Seriously this is my last post on Carries page , Unlike when any of my dogs have gone before because they have never gone so quick , I've been finding it hard to let that emotion out , The only way I can describe it is like when my other dogs have died before its been like a pan boiling over , Carrie seems to be a bit more like a pressure cooker feeling where it lets of a little bit at a time , anyway I was having a moment earlier and the puppies were settled on the bed , so I looked at Celia and Jess lying there , they looked so settled and cute and got up to give them a cuddle , Celia immediately jumped up on my desk , drank my Coke and ate my pancake and knocked the speaker off.

I was walking to work on Sunday though and this tiny little feather fell from the sky right in front of my face.

I've kept it and its going to be sealed in acrylic with some of Eves hair and forget me not flowers in the shape of a dog on the Moon on Friday

Monkey , you were the most characterful and loving girl I've ever had the good fortune to be be and I still love you so much.

Most dogs stop going out for a wee and wee in the house in the last Days or weeks but Carrie was totally the opposite , she started showing the puppies where to go for a wee ...outside.

I even had a dream last night that she was alive , which somewhere she probably is.

I love you Monkey and I will miss you so much , you knew so much about me in such a short time.

Thank you for being with me

Jeffrey xxx

Ah but its Carrie init ,I can't just stop posting until she is back with me so I won't until I do

This is going to be my last post on this page , I haven't really had any time to think about anything since Saturday and I woke Sunday morning to go to work and I couldn't remember anything and couldn't find Carrie until I remembered sitting in my Neighbours car with Carrie and saying " she's already gone" then I put it all back together ,whilst Ive had 8 lovely and very interesting and unusual years with Carrie , I feel I've had no time at all with her and that's probably me getting older , but I did have this time with Carrie and Mummy on their first Christmas together

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5s5aueFMPM

I can't end on anything else but to say , I love you so much Monkey you were, and still are a Legend.

Curl up , nest under the quilt and wait for me ,it's not going to rain , I love you mate , we will have a good sleep and then in the morning I'll Carry you over that bridge to see the others xxx

So sorry you have had to say goodbye to your lovely Carrie. Sending love and hugs. Run free Carrie. Xx

Thank you for your comments ,everyone they are making me smile , Especially the run fast and free comment, Carrie run fast ? , yeah if there's a pancake involved after that it was always sleep, she was always best at that and if there was ever the tiniest hint of rain in Ireland or Wales ,she wouldn't ever leave the house , I will stop posting on her page soon but now isn't the right time for me to stop talking about her.Shes probably now looking at Rainbow Bridge waving to Mummy, Eve and Teddy and thinking "Have I really got to WALK across that? I think Im going to wait on this side and have a sleep and then Dad can come in a few years and Carry me to meet the others , I can't be arsed to walk, it might Rain"

So very sorry to hear about Carrie, thinking of you at this sad time.x

Jeff, so sorry you have said goodbye to beautiful Carrie. Run fast and free sweetie. Another special Angel. X

Oh Jeff I am so sorry to hear about Carrie. She was one loved girl and hopefully Jess and Celia will help you to get through the difficult times xxx

Jeff, thinking of you, Jess and Celia...I am so very sad you have had to let Carrie go. I know you are all going to miss your beautiful girl so very, very much. I have loved reading all your comments over the years; they are the diary of her life with you. God Bless Carrie, reunited at Rainbow Bridge with Carla forever. Lots of love Kate, Skip, Fletcher and Lyra. Xxx

Sending our love and keeping you in our thoughts and prayers. Xxx

I'm so sorry to hear the sad news. x

I am so very sorry to read that you have lost your darling girl Carrie, anybody who reads your posts knows how much you adore your girls, please try to remember all the love and good times you shared together, she will always be just a heartbeat away, heaven has gained a very special angel. RIP Carrie, keeping you in my thoughts xxxxxx

I literally Cannot believe you are not here

I could be sad but that probably wasn't what you would have wanted me to be, I'm now going to have to pick up more poo than ever now you aren't here to eat it , I love you Cheeky Monkey and I always will , You replaced Eve in my life and gave me something very different and special .

From the lucky Human that's shared 8 years of his life with a Legend AKA Jeff

Carrie Im actually not crying Im just relived you only went downhill so suddenly and remained Stoic until the very last minute almost for me and didn't give me months of pain and worry , Yesterday morning you were scratching my back as you always have and I'm going to miss that , I promised you on day one that "I will never hurt you" and I would never let you be hurting ,Today ,Last night and this morning she was clearly not with me anymore but she will always be with me now.

I Love you so much Monkey

Carrie, sending you and your Dad lots of love. Xxx

Thinking about Carrie. Xxx

You seriuosly don't know what its like to be a Human we have so many faults , if your'e not bothered then why should I be .Still I love you so much Monkey xx

For gods sake Ive got a lump on my throat and the lovely vet lady Monica today said its not worth doing anyhting without risk but I just want my dinner , I can eat fine , breathe fine and its no problem , Dad seems to be a bit upset about something , hope its not about me becuase Im OK , well I know Im probly not that OK but I dont really care that much becuase Im simply not as bothered as he is , You know I had to WALK to the vets today I simply cannot be bothered to walk that much anymore , Im nearly 12 now , Dad keeps crying but he is an oversenative guy anyway

I'm presuming JessJess and Celia have given you an update, can I go back to bed now please, Thanks Carrie xxx

:)) Obviously Carrie is just reminding you all she is still in charge!! :))
Xxx

The "Puppies" as I call then have taken over the bed and Carrie seems happy to let them but last night she made a guest appearance and Id forgotten just how bad she is to sleep with , Nails under my armpits and twitching every 5 minutes , I can't believe she is 11 and a half it seems I've had no time with her at all

Yeah, Whatever, just get on with it you 2, I will always be the First Greyhound Dad ever had and no one can ever be me

To be honest , I just enjoy the company mad as they both are from time to time and sometimes I just want to be left alone with Dad ,I still get everything first , if its raining and I want to come back home , they follow me because Dad says they have to , Jess is my favorite though she reminds me of Mummy

Carrie, it sounds like you and your Dad have got your paws and hands full with Jess and Celia!! Sure they will get the hang of things with help and guidance from you....but you are quite right you were a crazy girl when you first went home too! Lots of love to you all :)) Xxx

These 2 are crazy and I thought I was, but the other day when Dad was at work one of them ( probably Celia, (not trying to gossip about her up or anything) I don't know because I was sleeping ) chewed the doorstop to the bedroom and we all got shut-in, so when Dad came home it was amazing and he didn't even get grumpy that his keyboard had been knocked off the desk as we were all so pleased to see him

Princess Jess is lovely and Celia is just proper strange, I've shown her how to open drawers already and Dad has had to tell her NO a few times, Dad said before she came here that she was Nervous, always kept her tail between her legs and I needed to look after her but shes a fruit loop, her tail is stupid and she always wins the Eating the dinner race ( I always come second even though I get my dinner first and Jess always comes last)

Dad says I need to teach them both the "Out of my kitchen " game but thats another story , I need sleep

Love Carrie Xx

WHAT ? 2 ? Merry Christmas everyone love Carrie x

Carrie, you have a lovely surprise coming your way next week...hoping it will help ease the pain of losing your beloved Carla. Xxx

This is doing my head in, Dad just keeps crying and he's not even upset, its a sort of happy crying that you humans do he said once Tom has sorted the garden next Friday I will know more, he is such a plonker sometimes, he thinks I don't know what's going on , it's pretty obvious he's going to get Chickens again , what a donkey he is thinking he can keep that from me, I'm going to rename him donkey

Oh Carrie sweetheart. Don't worry, although daddy misses mummy I think you will find he starts to feel happier soon. Just keep up the snuggles and you may get a surprise! Xx

Hi Carrie, don't quite know what is going on. Think it maybe more exciting than a crispy duck. Santa Paws may be making an early visit to you, who knows? Daddy Jeff might be up to something, who knows? Whatever it is I hope you like your surprise/surprises, nuff said for now!! Jo x

Can anyone tell me what is going on, please, Dad seems to be getting excited, I think he has bought me another crispy duck toy, it looks like a squashed duck but makes crispy noises when I chew it, he got one last Christmas and it was great fun for 30.5 seconds then I got bored

Daddy Jeff isn't right at the moment I am trying to comfort him by snuggling up to him but I think he is upset that Mummy has gone to the moon even though I know she is happy there and when he's not here she still comes down and gives me a cuddle

He is being really weird at the moment, and he keeps listening to the same song on youtube, I think its called Cecelia

Can anyone help me make him happy, please

Something is going on, I just know it, Daddy Jeff came home last night at 9 pm to give me my dinner and give me a kiss goodnight before he was sleeping in at work which he tells me is only 3 doors away from our house and his boss lets him come home whenever he wants to so he can see me, which probably explains why I have to get off our shared bed and go out for a wee after only 4 hours of being on my own during the day when I'm sleeping.

Anyway, I digress, just as he was leaving last night, I noticed he was crying ( don't tell him I said that), I was looking a bit sad though and I don't think he wanted to leave me, sure the heating was on but I kinda miss Mummy to cuddly up too since she went away to the moon to see Teddy , me and Jeff were outside watching them only a few days ago.

I sort of miss Teddy too, but he was sometimes an angry little man it was nice to know he was with Mummy on the moon

Has he got me a Christmas present? or has he got me something else for life?

Guess I'm just going to have to wait and see

As ever, Loads of Love Carrie xxx

( If you've never had this or a similar thought pattern with your dogs, your lying !! )

See you all on Tuesday, I just wish Daybreaks was closer to where I live

Jefffrey

Daddy, just came home smelling of a Greyhound, it wasn't a normal dog I know that smell anywhere that always gets me anxious, but it turns out he had, just after his beard trimmed at the barbers on the way to the co-op he had turned back to say hello to a couple with a greyhound after walking past them and it turned out to be a male called Dennis and the couple who were owned by him were visiting Bromyard for a few days and they had got him from Daybreaks, small world,

I love Daddy's beard and I think he loves, me snuggling up to it, he is on holiday this week from work and decided to clean mine and Carla's bed whilst we were lying on the bed we let him use, it looked like hard work and he said something about only him doing the cleaning as we both looked quizzically about what he was actually doing " Yeah its called cleaning and not a lot of it happens in this house " he said haven't a clue what he's on about as I do the washing up with my tongue all the time , In fact I'm so eager to do this I sometimes do it before he finishes eating ...So I just laid there with Carla Watching him, you Humans are strange things, why don't you just chill? , I love the ripped quilt, I did it myself, as ever loads of love ..... Carrie xxx

Was only thinking about you two the other day!
Glad you have successfully taken over!! Xx

Agents 770 (aka Carrie) and 1230 (aka Carla), reporting in, sorry its been a while but we've been busy on the Greyhound mission of taking over every bed and sofa in the U.K., We are both pleased to report that we now have taken the Bed as our own, We are both well, just thought we'd say hello and let you all know we have accomplished our mission .
Sometimes Jeff says things like "off" and ruffles the quilt, that means we have to move to a different place on the bed.

He still sometimes gets on the bed though, anyone have any tips on how to stop him

As ever loads of Love, Carrie and Carla xx

How you ever went out for a wee with snow up to your belly is beyond me , I love you monkey thats not just worth a bit of cake tonight , its worth a whole slice !

Dunno if this is allowed on here as it may be classed as advertising but i just saw this on Facebook and it looks so incredible that Ive just ordered Carrie and Carla's petlandia adventure book https://www.petlandia.com the preview looks amazing , I can't wait to read it to them

I've had a great day today Jeff said he was taking us running and the signs I read in the car said "Sighthound playgroup" in was a big very big barn and I was put with the nervous group (dunno why) I did a bit of running but I found it much more interesting to sniff everything in the barn rather than run around , wheres my bed ?

You're supposed to be a Sighthound capable of 260 degree vision , so why do you run down the stairs thinking Ive gone away when Ive only gone to the bathroom for a wee xxx

Woah , slow down , I know this page seems all about Jeff but Jeff is all about his Girls , our house (mine and Carries and Carlas house) went on the market today and I already have an interested buyer which is a game changer with the possiblity of moving to a house which I've fallen in love with in a very remote part of the Uk and never having to work again At 47 my heart in not in my home anymore , my heart is not working anymore , my heart is with my girls and just being with them and just living my life with them and cooking their dinner or any other greyhounds that choose to be with me , like I said before if its ok , this page is all about Carrie and whats happening in Carries life and this might just be happening in Carries life , if it costs anything to keep this page running then I'm happy to pay it just to have that documentation of a life of an amazing dog who I just so want to be with every minute of every waking hour , whoops , sorry not a dog a greyhound.

Separation anxiety Im sure comes from the owner and regardless of what I try I can't stop myself having separation anxiety . Carrie is fine she rarely wees and poos now whilst I'm out , its just me , I so don't want to be away from my girls.
If Id have known this and how I would feel about them both before I we all made friends and lived together a few years ago then I would have absolutely done exactly the same things as Ive done , my life has become caring about nothing but my girls and whatever I need to do to spend more time with them in there short life compared to ours is what I WILL do, why am I building up a fund of money I'm not going to need when I pop my clogs when I can be with my girls Now , and have no-one to leave anything to , Carrie and Carla are my life and my
life is with them.

I never expected I would ever feel like this ever but I started my new job today and just thought I don't want to and don't have to do this.

Im going to try to get into bed now , ah maybe not , maybe Ill just sleep on the dogs bed because they are in mine.

I'm quiet analtical as well and thought , is this just me having a mid-life crisis but no I don't think it is i think its just the realisation that I potentially don't have to work and can spend even waking hour that we all have left with two wonderful girls

Jeff

Thanks for the comments , this has been the strangest time in my life after 30 years doing the same job and whilst I was only including this almost as an entry to Carries life diary , it nice to have such nice messages the strange thing is Ive been cooking and adding things into their diet as I've had the time and have them on a mix of 2 complete foods one of them still being burns pork and potato and they are looking amazing.

"I love you 2 monkeys so much"xx

Jeff I know exactly how you are feeling I opted for redundancy rather than commit to working every weekend between March and October, plus continuing to live on the job and be on call. I now work just three days a week, have all my weekends and more importantly more time with Jed and Lottie. I have never regretted the decision. You have done the difficult thing the rest is plain sailing now. Enjoy.

Hey Jeff, so brave but I am sure your girls will reward you and your future is going to be wonderful. Much love to all. Xx

So , a long story but I will keep it long as ever , 3 weeks ago I quit my job , just went in and handed in my notice and went off sick for my notice period , work has been so stressful and I've been too far away from home for too long and want to spend more time with my girls now rather than waiting for an imaginary point in the future where I can be with my girls more because they probably won't be here at that point, how stupid to keep working and out the house for 13 hours a day, but also I never ever thought I had it in me to just quit my job.

I have a new job which starts in a week and I can walk to work in 10 mins and walk home in my lunch break , our house is too big for just us 3 but Ive found a great property just over the road from where we are with the most amazing secluded secure courtyard and garden where we could live mortgage free.

Story if this is a ramble , Ive posted this on Carries page not "Mummy's" page because well this page tells the past 4 years of Carries life , but it all came about when I was walking them before before setting off on another 13 hour day and this older Gent who always interacts with them was petting them and they looked so happy and I just had to turn away as I started crying, knowing yet again it would be another 12-13 hours away.

I have quiet a bit of money that has to be returned to me by my employer after 30 years service
including 4 weeks preserved holiday so , I've brought them both a dog sofa each which should
be coming on Weds

Dunno why I'm sharing this but i am but i may have to go on a course for work soon that lasts 4 days thats 4 days and nights without my girls and it got me depressed until my Aunty said she would accommodate them albeit in a kennel that they used to have there gun dogs in , in lovely place near the river severn , thats made me so happy , i have to go to work and I have to do what work tells me at the moment ,Aunty Marg and uncle stan have have an amazing place and I'm sure my girls will have a happy holiday

Hi Jeff, hope you and your two gorgeous girls are doing well. Xxx

No thats my Cornish pasty Don't lick it , nothing changes apart from the fact my separation anxiety from Carrie gets worse everyday

Hello again , just a few ramblings from me has anyone seen Doodad the the greyhound on YouTube very factually correct and hope everyone has a happy new year .

Its not torture honestly its a once a year shower and shampoo you know I still love you so much cheeky monkey xxx , yeah sure dry yourself off on my bed Im okay with that .

Wow , Ive had a very stressful week at work so to destress on my day off today , I let the chickens out to free roam with the Girls to see how it goes , albeit supervised , and you know what , nothing , not a grump a growl an attempt to eat them , absolutely nothing they just wandered the garden together , so amazing and so rewarding , `I even picked up Shirley ( the chicken ) and showed her to Carla and Carrie and they just weren't interested at all ...... may have taken me 4 years to do this but its great , Carrie still eats poo but she's my little girl and I love her so much and she is so sensitive and responsive to my moods its untrue and she does it when I least expect it . We've developed a new sandwich , its called a " Lots of Bread " sandwich so the recipe is one slice of bread , then two slices of bread in the middle and then a slice of bread on top , Carrie and Carla love Bread and they are both best best thing to happen to me since the sliced stuff.

We met Nina a few days ago , another retired greyhound who we haven't met before on a walk and the three girls got on mighty fine

We are doing the Great Global Greyhound walk in Malvern on the 19th June , hope everyone is well .

Yes mine was in the corner of the bay window I was told its advertising you have dogs at that house good luck to you tinkers nana

Thanks for the advice, Mine is intended to be internal, I just found the play on words amusing

Hi Jeff just read your post please be careful with your sign saying you have greyhounds the ploice told us to take it down as it lets so many people there are greys living there there are a lot of dogs been stolen from there homes . Jackie tinker nana

Hi Jeff. Wonder if they got one for I've got 4!

Just seen a house Sign that made me chuckle a lot , It read

" Be aware of the Greyhound"

I've ordered one

Unbelivable , I came home from work tonight to a trail of chewed wood pellets which I use on the wood burner all up the stairs , I told you they could read , first time in ages , everytime I tempt fate I keep saying thats going to be the last time I tempt fate , logic tells me though ,I payed them so much attention yesterday that I think they just missed me and I missed them too...cheeky monkeys

Obsessivly bonkers to be honest Deb , there are courses that I should go on for work and I refuse to go because it would mean stopping out overnight and mean either Kennelling or leaving them in my neighbours care in my house for 1 night and I won't leave them even for a night .Im actually at a stage where I really don't care about anything else other than my Girls being happy .... Why ? because that makes me happy

great to hear from you Jeff quite rightly you are bonkers about your girls!

Wow , I haven't been on here for ages and just got Carries Birthday wishes , thank you so much thats really put a smile on my face this morning , We've been together now for nearly 4 years and she's so like me (or I'm like her ,I'm never sure these days)

Strangely enough at about 4am this morning when she started grumbling because she had wriggled out from under the quilt I always cover them both with at night ( thats before I tell them how much I love them and Kiss them goodnight , but I'm sure I'm not unique in doing this) , I got up and rather than move the quilt which she was now lying on top of , I took my dressing gown off and put that over her instead , then got back into bed glanced across the landing at the picture of Eve and (in my head) said , You did well there Eve in choosing me another dog.

I've said before , I really couldn't imagine her being with anyone else , I was even at work yesterday pondering wether to buy a children's book called "Cheeky Monkey " ( thats what I call her Most of the time now because she is !!) to read to her ( it had a little speaker and sound effects and everything ..) now thats the stage I was at with Eve since I have all my ladybird books from when I was a kid , I used to read her stories some nights....

Mad ? , Yeah we both are and I don't think either of us would want it any other way...

Thanks again for the Birthday wishes , thats just so nice...

Mummy (aka Carla) is well too ,she is quite confident now ,not bothered by loud noises, eats her food 1.24567 seconds faster than Carrie (thats just an estimate , it may be 1.24566) and I can't remember the last time now Ive come home to a carpet ripped up , an electric cable chewed or my bed wrecked to be honest , I guess they were just "teething" problems and since you all know Greyhounds can read , you all also know that tomorrow when I come home from work , My bed and electric cables will be chewed and my carpets will be ripped up.

I could go on forever , but I won't ....

Jeff , Carrie and Carla x

Happy Birthday beautiful. Hope your special day has been lovely jubbly! xxxx

Happy birthday Carrie xxx

How time flies , Can't believe I haven't done an update on Carries page since July , happy to say that both Dave(aka Carla) and Steve (aka Carrie) are both fine , as for the names , well that came after I woke in the middle of the night and they must have both farted at the same time and my bedroom smelt like a blokes changing rooms , I said you're both supposed to be pretty girls !!, so I nicknamed them Dave and Steve .

Things have calmed quite nicely now and I never come home to any damage other than the quilt on my bed roughed up a bit , but I have a spare quilt and my fleece dressing gown which also goes on the top of my bed during the day so they can nest.

My house is almost entirely automated now just 12 months on from getting the heating sorted and its lovely to drive up and even before I get to the house , as the lights have come on automatically linked to my mobile phone as I'm driving home I can see Carrie is stood on the bedside cabinet looking out the window , its an awesome sight , Ill have to park the car away from the house one day and try and take a picture.

Oh and then theres the builders , there are 2 houses being renovated on the lane that we live on and where we walk and builders seem to love Greyhounds and Greyhounds seem to flirt with builders they love the attention and I absolutlely love watching them get the interaction , to the point I always thank people for interacting with my Girls.

Just getting a little worried about the nice Elderly Lady we meet almost everyday who says she's going to Kidnap my girls and take them home with her , I think she's actually serious !!!

For the first year in my adult working life , Im having Christmas off from work , no alarm callouts , no building checks , I just ain't doing ti this year so Im planning on another First , a christmas tree and the girls presents underneath , I can't wait to see how that goes down , because it probably will...

Hope everyones well

Jeff

Lovely afternoon , My neighbours had a proper English summertime garden party with Marquee and everything and someone said , "why not bring your dogs round" , so I did , Carrie and Carla so love interacting with people that they didn't even notice the food on the table......

well thats until they noticed the food on the table!!!

Carla was shaking after about 10 mins , which I seem to have seen when she's doing something that she likes ,they were both so excited but very well behaved , I'm so proud of them , they are both completely Zonked out now and its lovely to see

Oh Jeff you love your girls so much, but why not.They make you so happy.
Love to you all from The New Icemaid Clan xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Simple things please simple minds they say..... Carrie just sat beside me and it must have been the way the light was becuase I noticed her whiskers , Ive never noticed them before and they looked so cute and to be honest , the first thing I did was rub my nose on them , like I said , Simple things.....

Hi Jeff, you have one word wrong in your last paragraph....sometimes...shouldn't that be always give in, that's what happens in our home, we all do what Twiggy wants to do! Kate Xxx

We hate the rain in this house ,

i was at work for 8am this morning and anyone who was awake an hour or two before that will know the monsoon that we had this morning ,

my backyard was flooded , I had the floodgates on the backdoor as the yard was flooded so the Lovely Ladies couldn't use the garden .

Then I tried to walk them and Carla was loving it , but Carrie stopped and I mean STOPPED !! about 50 ft from the house and wouldn't move , I really need to take a photo of her face one day out in the rain , so defiant and cute all in one expression ,I wasn't giving in but .....

she Won and we came back inside , as much as you do , sometimes you really do just have to give in and let them have there own way...

Two very happy relax hounds xxx

Hi Jeff, lovely to hear from you . Hope you and the girls have had a lovely Christmas and will have a lovely New Year. Love The New Icemaid Clan xxx

Nothing much to say , I just love my lovely ladies https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5s5aueFMPM

Thanks , she's had it a few times , I think it's just becuase she sometimes still bolts her food although most of the time she's pretty calm now , but you know how it is , you get talking to people who know someone who knows someone who's dog met some fate and you get worried , Carrie has been fine since I wrote last night but we are still going to the vet tommorrow

Hi jeff our girl was like it took her to the vets told us to get bran for her you can get it from the health shop and just sprinkle a spoon full on her food and this should help her poo better not so hard good luck tinkers nanna xxx

Sorry to hear from you Jeff that lovely Carrie is off colour. Please keep us all inform of how she is. Love to you from Sylv and The New Icemaid Clan xxxx

Hi Jeff, sorry to hear Carrie isn't feeling very well, it's a good idea to get her checked at the vets. Our two also have the Burns pork & potato but we leave it soak for a while so it absorbs the water. We then add a little more water before we give it to them. We also add sardines or pilchards to it. I am sure everyone has their own way of doing things. I find the poo they produce is quite firm but not dry or hard to pass. Hope she will feel better soon. Xxx

Can anyone put my mind at rest until I can get to the vets on Monday , Carrie is having little episodes of seeming uncomfortable, pacing a bit , yelping and whining and stretching as if she's trying to fart , she's had it before on the odd day but it started again yesterday morning and although she's better tonight she's still had a couple of times this evening , I was worried it was bloat but her tummy is still quiet soft and floppy ,

she's fine in every other way , and Im taking her to the vet on monday ,but Both hers and carlas poos are quiet hard despite me adding what I think is enough water to their food and Carrie hasn't pooed as much in the past 24 hours as normal , Could she be just a bit constipated ?

They are both still only getting the Burns pork and potato food with water added just before they eat and a couple of tins of sardines each week , nothings changed in their diet for months , maybe I'm just a bit paranoid

Any advice will be useful ,

Well heres strange one , Yesterday my neighbour left me a note to say " are the girls not frightened of fireworks " ?

It turns out that she came in about 6pm yesterday to give the girls a peanut butter sandwich and open the back door for them for an hour or so , about 45 minutes later , someone was having a fireworks show , so my neighbour came to make sure they dogs were Ok and lock the back door and both Carrie and Carla ,were calmly wandering around in the Garden and just ran in wagging their tails , obviously not frightened then , although in the past few weeks , I've just been waiting until they are settled and sat calmly watching fireworks shows on youtube with the volume up , seems it might have worked !!

Following on from my comment on Carlas page ...

Carrie eats and wee's and poo's and sleep's , when you get to that stage with a greyhound , I guess thats about where you want to be ........

she still does all the other stuff that she did before and she's well interested in the equipment left by the electrician today downstairs , but she is "just Carrie" and she will always be "just Carrie" she's never gona change and I aint gona change her ... I wished for a unique dog and I nearly got my wish .....

I got a unique Greyhound !

Hi Jeff, you and your lovely girls deserve to be in the Grapevine and what a lovely photo in the Malverns.
Love Syv & The New Icenmaid Clan xxxxxxxxx

Oh wow , were in the Greyhound Grapevine , thanks Ruth

Anyone have any experience with Greyhound flaps , ( aka Dog flaps) ?

I would have never believed anyone who had told me two dogs of the same breed could be so dissimilar , Carrie is my soulmate in a dog , if a dog soulmate is meant to be licking the paint off the wall , It's amazing to be sat outside with Carrie and Carla in October in the sun and just being with them , I so can't wait to get there room done , Carrie Already gets excited when I tell her about her new bedroom , Im trying to get them excited about their space before its even finished , Carla , like I've said before will randomly chew through anything and I really don't want to risk any live electric cables , Im getting stressed everyday as to what i might come home to , but I did say and will say again , Warts an' all , I really can't believe that Im chucking so much money at making my house dog safe , but then again maybe I can , after all the bank can afford it , even if I can't

Hi Jeff you are such a lovely man and all this for your girls, but thats what comes of having a greyhound. We started with one, then two which we have since lost, but are now up to four and the pleasure they give is exceptional. Love to you and your girls The New Icemaid Clan xxxxx

Carrie is looking pretty fantastic now , her face has so many emotional expressions and her coat has grown back brown on her sides ,she's doing poo poos on request on walks , I just know her now after 2 years , its been a long learning journey for both of us , but when I look at her face and she looks at me, theres something I can't explain to the point it makes me cry , its absolutely amazing that when I walk her with Carla , whatever time , I just can tell when she's going to go and keep saying she's gona go she's gona go poo poos and she does a big poo and then she comes home and licks my face ......awesome.. I want another greyhound now , we've met a partially blind lady called Lynda with Tina another greyhound on our walks ,Tina is a bit of a grumpy greyhound and has tried to have a go at my two friendly girls .

I am going to convert the room I mentioned before into a dog room for when I am at work , but my plans are exceptional ,with heating and access to an outside area Im converting the room purely for them and works starting on it in a few weeks , Ive even spoken to a local joiner who is going to make them a 36 sq ft bunk bed which is bigger than a king sized bed so Carla can go under if she's stressed with thunder or fireworks and still let them have limited access to the house and the room will be for me too and its going to be a gentle introduction , Carla is still pretty destructive although she's calmed in the past few weeks and I've come home to no damage , it just seems to make sense to give them a space of there own when Im out with a feel of the house

Why is it so difficult to explain to anyone why greyhounds are such different dogs to every other dog breed, when you know in your head that they are ?

Hi Jeff, hope Carrie's claw is okay now? Your wording "I don't think anyone else would understand her like I do" really touched me. We adopted our beautiful 1st grey in March and the trust and understanding that built so quickly and deeply between 'Mom/Dad & Daughter' has amazed us. In spite of how much some of these lovely dogs have been through, they adapt so quickly it really is a privilege to have the pleasure and responsibility of living alongside and caring for our gorgeous girl; from whom we have learnt so much and as for cuddles & kisses we've received.... I've lost count! Big hugs to you all. T, J & R xxx

Poor Carrie....never a dull moment with them is there? Xxx

Hi Susy , yeah it is bad isn't it, like some chainsaw massacre ! , Im just lucky Ive got a carpet washer , Carrie looked so sad and I was miserable too but all things pass and she is fine now and really hunky and shiny , Im so happy that she's with me , I actually can't imagine her with anyone else as I don't think anyone else would understand her like I do

Hi Jeff been there, done it. Power for the course.Bad thing to go through,but what do I say but, it looks like an abattoir.
Hope all o.k with you all.
Love The New Icemaid Clan xxxxxx

Since this page has become almost a diary , I forgot to say that last week Carrie , somehow ripped her dew claw out at 8pm , after a phone call to the emergency vets with what seemed like loads of blood everywhere , I ended up having to bandage her up with a ripped up pillowcase and some toilet roll , she looked so sad but she was fine the next morning , its very strange but she's doing very similar things to Eve and alongside Carla , its like Eve has come back to me ....twice with knobs on

Theres only one thing in the world better than a greyhound .....

..2 greyhounds

I haven't posted in a while but took both Girls for a weigh in at the vets today and Carla has remained at 25.6 kg and Carrie is a whopping 25.7 kg , That'll do .... don't really want them to get much bigger and the squirrel we saw on the way to the vets was lucky I always keep them on a lead or else they would have been the weight of a squirrel heavier.

Oh, Jeff and your lovely girls. Your posts are so rewarding.
You and your lovely Carrie & Carla take care.
Be in touch soon.
Love to you and the girls The New Icemaid Clan xxxxxxx

Kate , I haven't taken them for a weigh in since they both reached over 25kg and I now know what looks right , they both have such glossy coats now and Im so happy with them , almost too happy , I met my neighbour who was walking home from work one evening when I was walking Carrie and Carla and I felt guilty to say to him that these two are the best dogs that I have ever had , they are so rewarding and easy , apart from when Carrie knows she's going to go for a walk then hell breaks loose and she turns into Hong Kong Phooey .

Hi Jeff, how are your two lovely girls? Have they both reached their ideal weight? I know exactly what you mean when you feel sad when people don't stop to talk to them....Twiggy always wags her tail at everyone and looks so disappointed when they don't say Hello to her! Please give Carla and Carrie a hug from us. Xxx

Something Ive never really ever done with any dog thats chosen to be with me before is toothbrushing , but with greyhounds its so much fun , especially if you get them used to a toothbrushing song , its like they are getting the best massage ever , its so bonding

Just a random ramble , but I get sad on walks when Carrie sees someone and starts wagging her tail and they just aren't interested , do they not know who she is !!!

I believe this to be the seller that was on ebay that I got Carries PJs from who now has there own website , I suddenly remembered it was where I saw the Parka type coats Im going to get for the Girls.. http://www.akcreations.co.uk/whichpyjamas.html

Been too hot to come over in the past few weeks as my car doesn't have Air conditioning and it seemed a bit silly to stick two black dogs in a hot car and drive to Birmingham but we've had some great walks now Carrie has worked out how to use the gates in the woods on Bromyard downs

Thats a shame, i'll have to look round for some for when we go camping in october

The pjs were off ebay but the seller doesn't exist anymore which is a shame becuase I reckon Carla Needs some for the winter

Hi Jeff, where did you get Carries sheep pyjamas from?

jeff, how great to read your update on the girls. so pleased how well they are getting on and how lovely so many people stop you to talk and compliment. we only have one (i would like 2, but not sure we have the room) but it is lovely when people stop to admire them and ask questions. xx

Just had to say I also have 2 Black greyhounds and they do look greyt when they are out together even more if they have had a groom and polish. !! Xxx

I must say , Kate , it has exceeded my expectations having 2 greyhounds , they are so easy and I just want them to be the absolute best they can be .

People who have passed me by before with Teddy and Carrie and just said Hello, sometimes asking what sort of dog Teddy was are now stopping to chat and comment on how good they look

Both Carrie and Carla now have several people who have made a fuss of them who they recognise and spot before I do and they both bow and wag furiously ,this one lady almost made Carries tail fall off from how excited Carrie was to see her again although they've not been mistaken for Dalmatians yet , but come christmas time , they are both getting Reindeer horns just for the crack , so they might get mistaken ..poor Twiggy how insulting to think she's a normal dog !

Actually , Ive just been looking at winter greyhound coats and found some with a hood that with the right choice of colours will look just like my Parka.

And one final thing , for now , Peanut butter and Sardine sandwiches actually taste really good !

Oh Jeff, this is brilliant news! It's lovely when people compliment your Greyhounds isn't it? Twiggy was not over impressed recently when a young lad asked me if she was a Dalmatian...! I bet Carrie and Carla look beautiful together. Xxx

Whats Black and weighs exactly the same as a 25Kg bag of coal ????...

Ok, strictly speaking you'd have been correct if you had answered "a bag of coal" but you would have also been correct if you answered " Carrie" , she's exactly 25Kg this morning , Carla was 25.6Kg and I wish I had £1 for everyone that tells me how good my dogs look ,

the comments on this mornings walk ranged from , "are they young dogs ?" to "what a handsome looking couple "

Hi Jeff, can't wait to see your two lovely girls. Xxx

Carrie has developed a mass of dandruff and shedding although the coat she now has is amazing , I gave her a shower this afternoon and checked her skin with a torch and it looks so much better , even my neighbour , who like me see her everyday has noticed how much better she looks , I may just have to bring both the girls up to daybreaks in the next couple of weeks as Im so proud of them

Fantastic news - your girls are obviously thriving!

Fabulous! xxx

Hi Jeff, so pleased they are both putting weight on. Hope you are well. Xxx

Well done Jeff....you are doing a great job !!!!!! Give your girls a cuddle from me !!! :-) XXX

Carrie was 20.9 Kg this morning , catching Carla up who gained a little bit at 24.9 Kg .

Hi Jeff, how did Carrie and Carla get on at the weight clinic today? Kate Xxx

Hi Jeff how are the girls doing? hope all is well xxx

Fabulous!!! Carrie great stuff Jeff x

Brilliant news for Carrie, can't wait to see her again. Xxx

So am I pleased with her weight gain , I was still a bit worried that everything might not have been OK over the past week, despite visit to the vet and what everyone had said , but by Friday/ Saturday , I just knew it was a simple fact of what Id been told , feeding too little of a poor quality food .

The old food actually did what it said on the label so to speak ,as I was feeding her enough for between a 15-20kg dog, for 2 years of a food that was bulked out with wheat ( something I can't even eat myself) , and thats what she became ,a dog on the low end of that scale , and completely undernourished .

Like I said before , I was initially feeling completely embarrassed when I came over and saw the condition of all the other Greyhounds , but more so when I got home , I was so worried about her

But the Burns food has done the trick , Even the ingredients list on this food is amazing , I can't even contemplate ever giving my dogs anything else other than this after the difference Ive seen over this past week , I guess like I said a bit of a learning time for me , just as people don't notice there dogs getting fat , I didn't notice Carrie getting skinny .

She's still as unique and mad as she's always been and the higher quality protein content hasn't made any difference whatsoever in her temperament , if anything , the better quality food has calmed her down .

Hi Jeff, I am SO pleased to hear Carrie is gaining in weight - fantastic! xxxx

Weighing in at 18.8 Kg this Morning at the vets , theres a massive improvement in her Coat and just generally the way she looks , she's now going to have the exact amount of food for her target body weight of 25kg of the burns pork and potato , with the addition of one cup of the Buns puppy food ( with the normal additions of sardines and a peanut butter sandwich) and she how much gain we have next week .

Fantastic! she is already putting weight on x

That's great news Jeff, she has put weight on already. Good idea to take Carla to the weight clinic too. Xxx

Well ,Carrie is fine and at 17kg this morning , they also run a free weight clinic at my local vets ,so both Carla and Carrie are going next week.

We weren't gone that long but Carla was so happy to see us when we got back .

Well done Jeff for bringing in Carrie and getting her sorted out. We were at the kennels at the time and, although she was so underweight, it was obvious you love each other very much. Don't worry now - all will be OK, you have loads of support from daybreaks. So glad carla has found a lovely home with you. She is a very sweet girl. Xx

Hi Jeff. I met you briefly in the kitchen yesterday when you were saying hi to Liam. It's obvious you and Carrie adore one another. Wishing you Carrie and the lovely Carla a happy new beginning together. X

This comment is more for Jeff than Carrie, Hi Jeff I've owned dogs for 30 years and can honestly say I still know nothing and I'm still learning something new about them every day! Each and every one of the dogs who have allowed me to share their lives has had something to teach me. It takes a brave man to admit (publicly) that he's made mistakes so good on you. I'm sure that you're girl is fine and probably needs more grub!

thanks Kate , you've been amazing today,absolutely amazing ,so supportive seems like she needs a peanut butter sandwich as well as a cuddle , you live and learn but I still feel like S^"t Good thing is though ~I never thought two girls would look so happy together

Sending Little Carrie my cuddle tonight. Xxx

Hi Jeff, I know it must have been a very difficult day for you today but so pleased you have been brave enough to post a comment about Carrie. None of us are perfect....we all get things wrong. Hopefully with a change of quantity and quality of food you give Carrie she should improve in a short time and put weight on. Great to hear you are going to get her checked out at the vets just to make sure all is ok. It was obvious she adores you and I am sure Carla will too. You are always welcome at the kennels, we would love to see you all. Kate Xxx

I wasn't going to post as Ive felt so bad after today after finding Carrie to be so underweight , I didn't think I was worthy of Carla but Carrie is so settled with Carla and Carla with Carrie and so happy and settled with a really full tummy, she really can't eat anymore today Im sure ,I really can't believe Ive been under feeding her that much to loose that much weight ,but I just know know I have been , thats the German Shep cross experience , Eve was always a perfect weight but , well I did say before they are all very different aren't they , well its Vets on Monday just to make sure everything is OK , but Im certain Ive simply not given her enough food which explains a lot and amazed by the little amount of poo that Carla did on the Burns food compared to Carrie, so glad we came today , thanks for the support again Ruth and Kate and the Vet lady and blueangle ( you are ace keep in touch with Nora) , Ive shared the good times and now the learning times and like I said I wasn't going to post because to be honest I got myself rather embarrassed but I had just never realised until today how skinny she had got .... its fat time I think , well actually not , but she is definitely going to have a few more very big dinners , I love Carrie to bits ,I think you all know that so maybe the past week and today has been fate...again

OMG , Jeffs downstairs at the moment so I thought Id just say I can't wait to meet Liam , he looks proper boyfriend material , right , I have to go , Daddy is coming back upstairs, love to you all , Carrie xx

Yes, all so different, even in the same breed or litter. Their physical and emotional needs can be so varied.

We have two beautiful new ones come in today - Livvi (brindle girl) and Gordon (big black boy)... x

Ok , let me ramble on for a minute ,I know its sort of off greyhound topic but Ive suddenly realised tonight and trust me its like a bolt from the blue , that you really do have such a different relationship with each one of your dogs that you ever have the good fortune to share your life with than you would ever expect , I remember saying , I didn't want Carrie to replace Eve and she hasn't but she's amazing and to be honest , I haven't actually got upset about Teddy dying , what did it for me was the fact that he was a stubborn little man and didn't even bother me with with his symptoms and just got on with barking at the postman . they are all very , very different aren't they ...

Jeff can only echo what everyone else has said - you give your dogs amazing lives you must miss Teddy so much and I hope you and Carrie continue to look after each other X

Thanks everyone for the thoughtful comments , I got Carrie a cuddly dog toy yesterday to keep her company until Mr Right comes along , it seemed a bit weird not having arguments over dog toys , She has her eye on Liam at the moment , she thinks he's proper cute , but we're going to wait a little while..

Hi jeff you had carrie the same time we had tinker we are so sorry about losing teddy tithe were very good together you do no where to go when your ready there are some beautiful greys at kennels we are sending our love to you and carrie at this sad time xxx

Oh Jeff I'm so sorry to read your sad post on Teddy, I hope you get some help from your Carrie.
Love and thoughts with you at this time Sylv, and The New Icemaid Clan xxxx

Oh Jeff, I am so very sorry to hear your news about Teddy. Sending you strength at your sad time. Ruth x

Hi Jeff, it's Jill and Paul here, we did your home check, we are so sad to read your news about Teddy, our thoughts are with you, if we an help let us know, sending love. Xxx

Hi Jeff, so very sorry to hear the sad news you lost your lovely boy Teddy today. I know how much you and Carrie loved him. He had a fantastic life with you. I am sure when you are ready there is a perfect friend for you both at Daybreaks. Kind regards Kate Xxx

Hello again ,Hope everyone is well , I just thought I'd post that Carrie lost her friend Teddy this morning at about 7am , he had only been ill for a couple of days , so although it may seem to some that its a bit soon , but she's looking for a handsome Male to cuddle up to , steal things with and generally hang out together , I think I know where to start looking....

Hi Jeff, pleased to hear from you and all is ok. Well the sleeping arrangements are one of those things us g/hound owners forgot to tell you. We are now members of the FFP Club with no 4. Love to you and Carrie xxxx

We are all very well , although Teddy is getting very selectively deaf in his old age ,thanks Susy for asking , Carrie even has her hair growing back on her thighs but shes still as mad as anything and still steals anything from under my nose and she worries my slightly that she can stand in front of the woodburner and get so hot without catching fire , Im just looking at her sleeping on my bed as I write this and its making me smile and it makes me so happy that everyday I come back from work she lets me into her home and more importantly she lets me sleep in the bed I once thought was mine ...

Hi Jeff, Hope you and Carrie are well. We love your posts, but we know you and she love each other. Take care.
Love to you both The New Icemaid Clan and Extra xxxxxx

Hi Jeff, it is great to hear from you...so lovely to hear Carrie is still crazy and you love her so much. Hope Teddy is doing well too. Xxx

Hello again , It was just 5 minutes ago when Carrie opened the desk drawer and ate my food that I was hiding, that I thought , I haven't posted anything on here for 6 months ,

Well she hasn't changed one bit , the only thing thats changed is I love her even more and I think she does me too , she is still absolutely CRAZY or sleeping , I have managed to stop sleeping in my bed with her though ,although I do sometimes treat myself to cuddles with her and when I do have her on my bed she has to be touching me all the time and most of the time thats with her head under my neck which is so cute it unbelievable .

She has of course become a bit more wise to her home and like I started with , she can open drawers and a couple of doors now in her quest to steal food and still anything of a bread like or cake like consistency seems to be a favorite with her.

Would I now give a home to another greyhound after 18 months with Carrie ?

To be honest and I think Ive said before there aren't any other breeds that I would consider now.

Hope everyone is well

Jeff

Hey Jeff - how is lovely Carrie? We are missing your updates!!!! x

Hi Jeff, not heard from you in a while. Hope all is well with you, Carrie, Teddy and the chickens. Kate and Twiggy xxx

I've Just been sat on the cold stone kitchen floor talking to Carrie ,who had her head snuggled into my shoulder , a greyhound completely changes your perception of what a dog should be !

She seems to be a bit dim sometimes,like getting so excited about being tickled on the tummy that she falls off the bed and then has to deal with Ted getting grumpy with her !

but I just know she knows everything about me , In fact I think she knows more than I do

Hi Jeff, I would love to see the artiicle about Carrie. Have just found your email address, many thanks Kate x

Yes the newsletter has been published I was so proud to see my dog on the front page and a nice long write up about her which I wrote , Im sure Kate , as Carries longest follower that Sue at the Jordan bear charity wouldn't mind sending you a copy , if you email me I will pass on her email address , my email address is somewhere amongst the ramblings from me below !

Hi Jeff, has the magazine featuring Carrie been published yet? Kate x

Famous last words but everything has been nice and calm for several weeks , ok she did steal a tomato this morning , but I think ( hope) Carrie has now got used to the etiquette of living in a home , when I go to work now , I maybe get one wee , its been a long haul and thats why I haven't posted anything for a few weeks , I just wanted to make sure She had got the idea , which she now seems to have done.

The main problem I have now is everyone who visits me wants to take her home with them !!!

Carrie is just what I needed

OK , so sometimes ,just sometimes , having a neurotic greyhound about the place isn't the best ,but I thought I'd share the worst bits as well as having shared the best bits ,

I had some builders in today and Carrie was getting a bit stressed as she could hear me and them outside , so much so she chewed a chunk out of the door , never mind , the door can be repaired or replaced , but she can't and I wouldn't have it any other way .

Quickly approaching the anniversary of Eve dying , Im just going to leave the chunk chewed out of the door as a lasting memory of Carrie , it all adds character to a 400 year old house !!! Luckily the door was new and not one of the 300 year old ones

I got my first Egg from the chickens today and I got so excited , that Carrie just reacted to my excitement and I have the SCRATCHES from those long legs all over my body to prove it , I wont be doing that again in a hurry , she was almost out of control ,

but totally my fault , the next eggs will be a very low key event !!!

They are going to use her headshot on the front page and the pj pic on the rehomed page !! How exciting , thats defiantly going in a frame on the wall

How lovely, Carrie a magazine star! Hope they use the photo of her in her PJs!! xxx

I think there are probably enough stories about Carrie to fill the entire magazine.

Guess whos going to be in the latest edition of the Jordan Bear Charity magazine ????

I was delighted when Sue asked me today if she could do a little bit on Carrie

Thanks, great, I'm going to look on e-bay! I can't wait to get my girls some of these for Christmas! Perhaps the next fund-raising event should be asking all the hounds to model their new night attire on the cat-walk, or should I say dog-walk?!

I was surprised how easy they are to put on , ( or should I say how easy she was to let me do it) head in , front legs in , back legs in , simples !

She did wriggle her back legs out overnight though , but she is such a fidget in bed Im not surprised at that

I would seem for the first time in my life I've started a fashion trend , just call me Gok Wan !

To Jak'smom, i checked them out on ebay yesterday and they do have holes in the right places so you do not have to take them off, they also offer to make them with velcro so that they can easily be fitted for elder dogs. Other designs were available too.

Ah Jeff, they look fabulous. I'd love to get our Emily a pair, but not sure how I'd grab hold of her long enough to put them on, have enough trouble with her fleecy night-coat! Checked out the Ebay site though and they have some lovely different colours. Mand

Carrie looks so sweet in the pj's, the pj's are such a good idea and I am sure if I showed the pictue to our Rose she would be sure to want a pair of pink pyjamas.

Sorry my phone went funny. Havent got a clue where i got to. Carrie will be super warm during this cold weather in her special pj's. Looks like she may be starting a trend

Great picture. Would have been great on You Tube if you could have filmed her. Can I ask do they have strategically placed holes or do you have to take them off to go the loo

I got mine off ebay , they were £17.00 custom made , I just did a search for greyhound pyjamas , the seller was poshpaws*2010 , dunno if I can post that on here if its some sort of advertising , but they are lovely and Carrie looks so special wearing them , the picture makes me chuckle everytime I see it....wheres the SNOW ?????

Aah, that's lovely! May I ask where you get things like this from? Is it possible to get them from the kennels? I think I'd like some for my two girl greyhounds!!!!

Im drawing the line at getting a matching pair for myself , I love PJs so it made sense to buy my dog some , but a matching pair is going a bit far , although I am tempted to get some in blue , thanks Ruth for putting the picture up.

Adorable!

Oh WOW these are fantastic jim jams and obviousley even more stunning as they are modelled by Carrie xxx

Oh, wow...she looks fab! I could just munch her to bits!!xxx

Awwwwwwwwww soo cute!!!

She looks gorgeous in them!!!!

Carrie has just tried on her new Pyjamas , she loves them , I cant wait for it to get really cold so she can wear them properly.

Hi Jeff, I love hearing your stories of life with Carrie, they always make me smile. :)

I've been sleeping all afternoon with Carrie in my bed , as I woke I had this sudden urge to do round and round the garden , like a teddy bear on her feet, but it just doesn't work with greyhounds , one step , two step three step , four step , five step , I'm still counting

Carries latest new favorite thing in the world is tissue , just plain old toilet roll , Since I alway have some tissue with me ( its a kind of comfort blanket thing for me) , theres always loads readily available ..

Now Teddy likes tissue too , but when he eats it , he looks almost intelligent , like hes saying " I know what im doing and I like it , leave me alone please" and thats OK

but when Carrie eats it , it looks like shes malnourished and having to do it because she is starved

, in one way its actually really quiet upsetting to see ,

but in another , its quiet funny to see knowing that shes not malnourished after a bowl of food , two carrots a chewy bone and some meatloaf , some cake and some cashew nuts that "Jaws" like mouth silently moving toward the desk to grab the tissues !

As well as telling the dentist about her last week , I was also chatting to the receptionist about how Mad Carrie is ( and they know how mad I am , I make no secret now about having to tidy the magazines when I go in and she said that we must be the perfect match !!...

I think We are !

Perfect early evening , I went to bed after locking up the chickens and Carrie was on my bed and looked like a gremlin with her bottom teeth protruding , whilst I was listening to jake bugg , simple as this , something as simple as this has made me so happy , Carrie is either a complete nutter or turned off , sleeping , I've said before this dog is on or off , 40 miles per hour or almost dead , and its the almost dead moments that make me realize just how much I love her , I was telling my dentist about her today and I started crying , Carrie is just so special , now I'm off to bed again to get my back torn to shreds when she starts to dream , oh well all good things have a price

Phew , Carrie is back on the bed after her little Jaunt around the Mobile home site this morning , I was talking to the lady that lives in a mobile home at the bottom of my garden and she uses part of my Garden and the Gate was open so Carrie went on an exploration , good thing is she came back when called after a little sniff around everyones Gardens , luckily she didn't wee on their near perfect lawns , theres a First !

Hi Jeff, Carrie was obviously just making sure it was good enough for you! xxx

A nice new Memory foam mattress topper, thats what I had delivered today and you are now all thinking that Im going to say Carrie loves it and is sleeping on it ( well she is sleeping on it at the moment) but....

whilst I was busy stripping my bed to change it to the new mattress , Teddy was terrified of it as he is of anything new in his home ...Carrie was busy taking bites out of the new mattress and spitting them on the floor ..

This dog needs a "check up , from the neck up" , luckily shes normally not destructive with furniture , she must have just thought it was a big sponge cake , something good to eat out of a plastic wrapper and now shes sprawled across it like I bought it for her and I haven't even tried it myself yet...

ohh jeff i love your carrie tales.xxx

To cut a long , long very long story short , I was in the Kitchen this morning after moving and rat proofing the chicken run, I noticed a small cabbage like leaf on the floor and as I had been out in the Garden I thought nothing of it ,the kitchen had been shut until I came inside, then I went upstairs with my green tea and cake and Carrie was in her bed finishing off the whole cauliflower she had stolen , These dogs can steal things under your nose , Greyhounds are stealth , silently and adeptly and so gently , stealing things Right in front of you without you noticing..

And then you make the one little mistake of letting them on your bed , just for one night, or so you think .... well that was weeks ago and it seems she hasn't moved since , apart from going to the kitchen to steal a cauliflower !

Oh Jeff thank you SO much for postin this, not havin a good day n now laughin SO much!!! Will try this, hee heee xxxx

Brilliant idea Carrie! I'll have to remember that one ;-)

That's so funny Jeff. I've had one if those days today, but if the theme continues tomorrow. I'll imagine 'Carrie's Way' of dealing with a problem - that'll certainly put a smile on my face! Mand x

This is carries first day in my special downstairs room with the fireplace than I only seem to use during the winter , it has memories of Eve and Carrie wasn't sure what to do when she got in here , so she took a pee on the rug that's her answer to everyone of life's problems , I wish it was so simple

Hi Jeff, brilliant picture of Carrie. xxx

Ha ha Teddy most definitely wont let himself be left out , hes a proper " in your face"powerful skye terrier but it seems like seconds ago I had him from rescue when he was about 3-4 years old ex breeding dog rescued by the rspca , he was a nightmare to begin with , I was so close to giving him back as he was attacking Eve , but I got him to calm down and hes now so special and so loving, any dog I have is with me for the long haul and I dont care what I have to do or put up with in the short , medium or long term to sort them out, Im just committed from the start and hes now getting to be an old man , I know this is a greyhound forum and not a Skye Terrier forum , but it still pains me to see my special soldier , Teddy getting old hes now about 9 or 10 , but he still barks at anything that moves and I love watching him lick Carries ears or giving her a big kiss and hes getting very selectively deaf !!!

They are both on my bed now ,I think Im going to sleep with the chickens...goodnight

What a beautiful picture,what soulful eyes.I think your partnership was meant to be.Love to Teddy as well don't want him to feel left out!

The picture just seems , for me , to capture the crazy mad dog she is , it just her eyes , I know i've said it many times before but her eyes drew me too her and Im so glad they did , Eve will have alot of explaining to do as to why she sent me this nutter

Hi Jeff, it is a pleasure - it's absolutely gorgeous!

Oh WOW thanks Ruth for putting this pic up , It means so much to me

Just took the most amazing picture of Carrie , I really hope it can be shared on here , at the time I took it I was listening to Welcome Home by Radical Face , brilliant song and fits perfectly

Totally agree Jeff, why go for a hot water bottle you need to fill or warm in the m/wave when you can have an eco one. Having had several g/hounds it can be part of the course. Its when it comes to trapping ones legs it goes a bit off course, but lovely all the same.
Sylv and The New Icemaid Clan xx

Totally agree Jeff......I wasn't going to go through another cold winter on my own! ;-)
Bob loves cuddling up and keeping me warm. He actually does sleep in his bed on the floor in the bedroom, but often jumps up on the bed about 3.30am....think he get's chilly...or lonely ;-)

Oh Jeff you are not alone there, I have 3 hot "hot water bottles" most nights, roll on the winter!

Yet another added benefit of having a Greyhound in your home with their thin coat and living on your own is when you get them in your bed ( and Yes I know I shouldnt , its not good for your health and all the other stuff , like pack order and so on) but its like sleeping with a radiator such a cosy night last night ( albeit a bit itchy at times) , and Carrie went into total zonked out mode and was so cute with her head under the pillows , Greyhounds should be compulsory in Eco Homes to save on the heating bills!!

Shes in her bed tonight with a warm water bottle and a sleeping bag , but when and if the snow comes , Im taking my Radiator to bed ! The chickens will soon be laying eggs and the greyhound will be producing Heat ... ah the good life

Hi Jeff, Maybe another optiations, would be the answer.
But you love each other. I suggest you hide in the bath or under the stairs, something a little more difficault She know's were you are.
The New Icemaid Clan.X

Dear Daybreaks ,

I recently got a dog from you called Carrie and I think she is faulty , I was told that she was a Sighthound and to beware as she could spot a cat half a mile off , so it is with concern that I write tonight as I think Carrie is not working properly , she is completely unable to find me when we play hide and seek even though I was in full view but just somewhere she wouldn't expect me to be.

Maybe she should have gone to specsavers...

( actually I think she was just humoring me !!)

It's all a ploy Jeff to get you to give them more cuddles and food!!! Mand x

My boss , Cari Eadon , brought my dog Carrie Eden , a present , a mini hot water bottle , it's tiny and Carrie loves it filled with warm water under her sleeping bag , but can someone tell me why greyhounds still look so sad and does the look on there face absolutely not just kill you with emotion ?

Thanks to everyone for the responses and advice , the dogs love the greyhound food and Ive just ordered 6 months supply as I like to keep well stocked , Cant say Ive noticed much of a difference in the Kickboxing lunatic with "startled by the world eyes" but Im sure it will be better for her health in the long term.

Now, anyone any tips on how to stop a skye terrier being obsessed with chickens ?

Answers on a postcard please ...

Hi Jeff

I have always fed my German shepherd ( Harry) on James Wellbelloved as he has a upset stomach due to digestive and pancreas problems (he is 12 by the way) everthing was going well until we had a bag of JWB that didn't suit him. So made the decision to feed him Burns Pork and Potato ( the same food that we feed Jack our grey). He absolutley loves the food and has no adverse reactions, they both tell me when it is feeding time and Harry seems to have a new bounce in his step.

Mary

We feed our two Goldens on the same food as Minnie. It is a 18% protein food and they (Goldens) came off a 22% protein food which they had been on for years - both are fine and have had no problems.

Hi Jeff, I have given my non greyhounds the same food as my greys for 4 and a half years now and have had no problems. Obviously all dogs are different and reactive in differing ways, but I would say give it a try you may get a bit of an upset tummy initially as Teddy gets used to his new diet but that should settle. Jill.

Carrie has had 20% protein food since I got her ( which I have always given my dogs and I know borderline for greyhounds) but Ive been keen to get a lower protein food and have found a 17% greyhound food ,burgess Greyhound mix, but was also keen to clear out the 6 months supply of dog food that I have always kept , so I know Burns Pork and potato is recommend , but I dont do pork I hate the stuff and wont even put my dogs anywhere near it , the thing is Im keen to give Teddy the same food , so does anyone feed there "normal" dogs this lower protein food... to save Ruth getting Repetitive Strain injury on the computer mouse finger, approving comments , if you would like to reply off forum and if its ok to do so , my email address is Jeff@theoldbridgehouse.wanadoo.co.uk

My word , a serious post from me , wonders will never cease ..

Well Jeff, short time span I thought was a human problem.
Well , all that ends well. hope the bantams lay well.
Love The New Icemaid Clan xx

The Chickens arrived today (well 3 bantams actually) , why did I think the dogs wouldn't be interested , it was like the Fireworks from the olympics , Carrie was biting the run to try and get in and Teddy was just mesmerized , but they both soon got fed up and now just aren't interested at all , typical short attention span of my dogs

Can someone tell me why I bother , I bought 2 new toys today ,I was giggling to myself , as you do , in the shop thinking the dogs are going to love these

When I got Home, Carrie chose the Alien and Teddy chose the monkey , all was nice and happy

and then after a minute or two Carrie wanted the monkey and Teddy wanted the alien ,
so after a few barks at each other they swapped , then Carrie wanted the Alien and Teddy wanted the monkey , so they swapped again

and now Carrie wants the monkey back ....

Hi Jeff .Well with all that's going on with Carrie and yourself, with the hen's coming what does one say but you are leading a great life. Carrie being the love of it.
Love The New Icemaid Clan xx

Hi Jeff, I thought you, Carrie and Teddy had been quiet for a while, I see you are going to liven things up by getting some chickens! Can't wait to hear what they both think of them! xxx

Carrie had a great day gardening yesterday and spent the whole time trying to eat blackberries straight off the brambles , I wonder what shes going to make of the chickens Im planning on getting in the next few weeks ( dont worry they will be in a separate fenced off part of the garden safely enclosed in a fox and dog proof run) afterall , I want the eggs for myself although I am looking forwards to giving Carrie the first egg that they lay for me.

I was rather pleased and proud today when I had a new local mobile dog groomer come round to trim Teddys hair and it was all I could do to stop her taking Carrie home with her , Carrie was just like the best behaved sweetest greyhound ever , Even I would have taken her home .... Oh I already did.....!!!

oooh jeff just love hearing what carries been up to,sounds like she has the most wonderfull home with you despite her exploits,i think once u,ve made a commitment to them u have to love them no matter what.lol( chewed work surface & pine unit, 2(yes 2)lots of cushion floor,chewed skirting board,& many numerous others,xx

Carrie's latest exploit reminds me of our first rescue grey, Maggie. We had 2 little dogs and it took us ages to realise that Maggie could reach things. In the early days she managed to steal and eat a rhubarb crumble, a whole bag of expensive spelt flour and best/worst of all the christmas cake when I had just drenched it in brandy! No need to tell you of the digestive consequences---suffice to say there was a lot of clearing up to do and we eventually learned to put stuff out of reach.

I really dont think it will put her off . but the eggs I bought today are safely in a cupboard , funny thing is though , its endeared me to her even more , all I've been saying to her all morning is " 18 EGGS " and I think the protein content has sent her a bit hyper , I said I wanted a characterful dog , I just still can't understand how people have a dog and then they do something like this get rid of it , I find it character building and although I dont encourage it , it was just one of those unexpected moments of dread seeing the chewed egg box on the landing and then the whole ground floor of the house looking like end of school term or a bad Stag night ,that once cleaned up is now , almost a special memory ( and Im hoping the last of that memory has just come out in the garden !!!)

Carrie is my special Alien from outta space , Im not normal and neither is she , perfect match..

This latest post is sponsored by Zoflora , Fairy Liquid and Vax

Oh dear....I wonder if this will put her off eating eggs ever again?? What a little tinker! xxx

In the spirit of keeping you up to date on Carries progress , I bought some eggs yesterday , only a pack of 18 and overnight shes eaten the whole lot , the vets say it should be ok apart from the obvious things ,I was worried about the risk of salmonella but its tiny and unlikely thank god for that shes had access to the kitchen before and never bothered , My house is going to smell bad , I wont keep you up to date on the progress of that !

A whole day with me at work and Carrie Unmuzzled for the first time.. home alone ! , nothing chewed nothing damaged ,just one piece of coal taken from the coal scuttle and presented nicely on my bed as a welcome home gift , I forgot to tell her that you only give coal as a gift on new years day !

Carrie is beginning to realize that work clothes mean she needs to be settled and day off clothes means she can be with me all day , and she can kick box with her legs like a kangaroo !! thats all after she wakes me rooing at 5.40 am as she did this morning , I've no doubt now that Eve sent her for me to stop me being lazy....

Hi Jeff, Sorry you have not long discovered that the dogs are from :
Venus not Mars but they love us all ,and we love them too bits. You are great with your beloved Carrie.
Love to you. The New Icemaid Clan. XXX

Hi Jeff, you are obviously made for each other! Although I don't think Carrie will be too impressed being linked with the word "grubby"!! Like the idea of it not raining on Mars, when's the next shuttle leaving?! xx

I've just realized , looking at the rehoming pic of Carrie , how much we seem to be "dressed "the same , take a close look at my grubby clothes then look at Carrie

Whilst , in one way , Im not serious about this question , in another way , I am....

Do Greyhounds come from Mars or out of space ? because they are definitely not like normal dogs from Earth .

Carrie has now gained loads of confidence , a noticeably thicker coat and she really has discovered how to Roo when I wake in the morning , its so pretty , I shouldn't encourage it , but , to wake up and have a dog sing to you is something proper special...

She still wont go out in the rain , Ah well , maybe is doesn't rain on Mars..

Despite how firm I have been with myself since I had Carrie , that face of hers , outside , in the rain for wee wees , just Kills me , thank God us humans have evolved with dogs and invented disinfectant and mops ! Next time it rains I will be strong .

A poo and wee free day...Well done Carrie Eden! xxx

Carrie just wanted to say how sad she was for Fearne.

Thanks Deb for clarifying that , there must be some Good hearted Strong willed dog lovers out there who can take a dog in and then let it go , even if they know its going to a good home , it must be tough work emotionally , hats off to them.

fostering really means that the grey is being cared for in someones home rather than being kept in the main kennels whilst a permanent home is found.
Sometimes dogs are fostered if they are old or are not well or they are stressed in kennels or have already lived in a home.
Quite a few greys however do seem to end up being rehomed by their foster families and I think some are fostered in an attempt to hoodwink some partners into thinking the dogs are going back (when they dont) a trick which seems to have worked quite a number of times!

OK , I give up , I've asked Carrie and she hasn't a clue either ,she just ate her Bonio , wagged her tail and looked confused .... but what is the difference between Fostering and Rehoming a greyhound ?

She sounds like a real character! I have 2 boys ans a girl and my Penny is certainly the more "quirky" of the 3...and I adore their bows too, the "good morning" bow, the "I'm excited because of food/walk/play" bow and the "just 1 more" bow before I come and do what you asked me to do! Enjoy her, she sounds lovely x

Carrie ! Rain ! , used to ! , those words don't mix in her head , she is turning out great though , (I still get a few wees when I'm at work) , but apart from that she just great , she is such an untidy girl though , she actually pulls her bed closer to mine overnight most nights and seems to make it into a perfect nest shape in the middle of the room (it's only a kingsize quilt in a single cover) , but she never attempts to get on my bed when I'm in it , all the advice has worked wonders , but she has her own little quirks and I wouldn't want to lose that character for the world , and those eyes , those crazy mad eyes in the picture , are actually , exactly what she's like .... She is exactly what's on the tin and a little bit more ! You are so right Kate she does "bow" and it's awesome to watch

Hi Jeff, great to hear you are all doing ok. Hope Carrie is getting used to going out in the rain. They are lovely to watch when they stretch, I never get tired of seeing a Greyhound "bow"! x

hi jeff,i just love hearing all about what carries up to,sounds like u,ve given her a wonderful life,some partnerships are just meant to be.xxxx

I haven't posted anything for a while , so I thought Id give an update , I so love Carrie ,she is so precious and delicate , she is getting better everyday , She jumped on the windowsill where I kept Eves and Kevins ashes when I was out a few weeks ago when we had that bad rain( its over four foot high to the windowsill) , which prompted me to move the dogs ashes , 2 days before torrential rain leaked through the window and if she hadn't have done this ,the dogs ashes would have been wrecked ,

I might just add the word Fate to her name of Carrie Eden ,

and then theres just the plain and simple characteristics of the breed , the way she stretches , I just love watching her back legs up front legs down ,the way she barks ,I just love her , the hardest part in all of this , is ignoring her when I get home , but doing that has calmed her down a treat !!

I could never justify getting another dog other than a retired racer and I so want another to join my soulmate , Carrie

Hi Jeff my cousins dog enjoys doing the same she also loves standing in the garden and barking at nothing......

I dont think the lady is for turning on this issue ..

Teddy is the only dog I've ever had that positively loves sitting outside in the rain and snow

Oh well , If at first you dont succeed .....

Hi Jeff, Twiggy used to hate going out in the rain too but she has got used to it. As long as she gets wrapped up in a nice warm towel when she gets back from a walk she is fine. If it is last thing at night I resort to bribery and she gets a piece of meat for going for a wee! Glad to hear you are all well ...and you have less poo to pick up!! x

So pleased all is good with you and the whoofs ... I have the same prob with Jessie going, shouls I say not going outside in the rain .... so I put a lead on her, take her up the garden, loose the lead, she runs back in the house and I'm left standing getting soaked!!!! must work on that one!!! Jx

I have managed to reduce the poo , simply by feeding her less than the recommended amount of food for a great dane !! , I was a bit stupid there , but an email to Jill sorted that one out.

I have also managed to stop her getting on my desk , by simply giving her daytime access to another room with a low window , when Jill said she was probably getting bored during the day as Im still keeping her muzzle on when im out , shes now found an armchair in the bedroom which she loves and claimed as her own and the window has a picture window seat which both Carrie and Teddy love to watch the world go by , I call it their Widescreen TV.

But , she HATES , shall I say it again she HATES the rain , wont go out for a walk , wont go out for a wee sorry that should be WONT go out for a wee and when I ( theres no nice way of saying this ) Push her out , she crys like a baby ...

I wanted a female dog with her own personality warts an all and I got one , and she is special , I really couldn't have wished for anything more than I've got , Im so proud of her and shes so eager to learn everyday...

Ive said it before , but , her bark is amazing , its rare but when she does bark shes like a little girl saying Woof , its so pretty I just want to munch her

Hi Jeff, My sister and I started to give our Greyhounds Burns "Pork and Potato" last year and found the amount of poo they produce has decreased a far bit!! It is quite expensive but a very good quality food. You are right about the pyjamas, Twiggy looks so cute in her bedtime coat with snowmen on it!! So pleased to hear Carrie is doing great, hope you all have a good weekend together. Kate x

Hi Jeff Hope your expectations have come true.
G/hounds are great animals. Take care.
The New Icemaid Clan.

Just discovered Greyhound Pyjamas , now I dont treat my dogs like humans but this has to be the best part of owning a greyhound !!
Carrie has settled alot in the past week again and as I found out , too much food makes too much poo !!

HI Jeff. Don't worry about it. We give our two something from our plate when we've finished eating, provided it's safe for them to eat and they've been good and stayed on their beds while we've been eating. We've found that our two love their veggies, so they'll often get some of mine, because I hate them - yuck!! Mand

Finally , I have given in to the demons tonight ! .... Ive given Carrie some tit bits of what I was eating , but I was strong and didnt give them her when I was eating , just afterwards ,she has so far showed little , if any interest in my food ( apart from the first day and breadmaking dough) so I just rewarded her with some beef and a bit of cake when she went out for a wee

shes really good at not bothering me for food and Im keen to keep it that way ,she even lies by me and shows no interest in what im eating but that little devil in my head was saying go on .... do it... so I compromised and gave it as a reward for doing good wee wees outside !

Lovely to read your latest post Jeff .. keep the posts up ... enjoy your weekend Jx

Hi Jeff, glad to hear Teddy is well, I would love to know what he is thinking when he sees Carrie eating candles and carrying coal and potatoes around!! Hope you all have a lovely weekend together. Kate x

Hi Jeff
I look forward to your latest posts, they make lovely reading.
G/hounds are lovely animals and I think you have the bug.
Over time I've gone from one, to two and now three of these lovely dogs.
Love to you all The New Icemaid ClanXX

Teddy has been great after the initial first week, its like hes turned into the older more mature dog which of course he is and he just lets Carrie get on with things whilst hes seemingly uninterested , I have found before that having a new , younger dog , seems to make the older one , calm down after he or she has showed the new dog the house rules and sometimes in the early days , that may mean a few grumbles but well worth the hassle and corrections to see them both laid on there beds side by side which they are now ...

Teddy isn't even the smaller dog , maybe in legs he is but comparing them both his head is bigger and his body is only a tad smaller than my sweet lass ..., Im lucky Eve found me a tiny precious greyhound to introduce me to the breed

Oh fantastic you too have a candle snacker, all our candles are now on high shelves n only taken down when we want to use them, they sure make for lovely poo's, least they are nice smelling!!
Glad to hear that she's loving her new home life. What does Teddy think to it all?
Keep the updates coming xxx

I decided not to show her chewing candles that she found in the bathroom or bringing coal and potatoes upstairs , but shes just as contented doing all the above as she is sleeping on a sunday afternoon , she is my special little poppet and more than learning new home life , her special character is really coming through , Im so pleased with her. Toileting is still taking some patience but a new feeding routine means I generally only get to clean up wees when I go out to work , Ruth did say she was a bit of a messy girl compared to the others but it will come with time Im sure

Hi Jeff, great to see her so content on the video. xx

Hi Jeff, just watched your video ... lovely to see Carrie is well settled and enjoying life in her new forever home. Also good to see duvets and sleeping bags everywhere ... just like here!!! Jx

Not a very good quality video , but 2 weeks ago she was jumping on the kitchen units , I think shes liking her forever home , Youtube " Carrie Eden " shes quiet settled now

:) Hi Jeff Don't worry too much- we've all done things in the past that we wouldn't do now and our dogs have been ok :) Like you say you then sometimes get a dog who needs a bit more training :) most of us are very well trained ... by our dogs :) You, Carrie and Teddy sound like you're doing fine, keep up the good work :) tho please don't let her teach my Charlie how to use the phone or internet .. he'll be ordering take aways all night long :) She sounds his kind of girl - he can get out of a greyhound crate and leave one of two door bolts still done up :( Julie

its all got a bit weird ,but a good learning curve for me , I've spent loads of time trying to stop her being Neurotic when I get home and then for the past few nights shes been really good not jumping or anything ,still excitable but then I get worried that shes depressed !!, why doesn't she jump up at me anymore!!!

I am a bit of a twatt sometimes , shes obviously happy , everytime I move she stays on her bed and starts wagging her tail and then follows me everywhere in the house.

I hurt my arm at work 3 days ago, so I told her when I got home and pointed at my arm and said Ouch Daddy hurt his arm today and she kept rubbing her face up against it.

Shes rolling on her bed at the moment , legs in the air kicking teddy and he just lies on his bed next to her

I've left her unmuzzled for the past couple of nights after her tea when I get home , until I go to bed and shes showed no interest at all in what im eating ( or eating Teddy !!), but that really is a hard thing to discipline us humans not to get the dogs used to Tit-bits of food.She will get some , in the future , but not yet as we set the ground rules firmly in her head ( and my head)

I've so realized in the past couple of weeks with Carrie and all the advice, that, in the past I've actually rewarded my previous dogs for bad behavior that I didn't ever think for one minute was bad behavior , like looking at me and barking , whining or genrally just being "cute looking" for tit-bits of food ...

or jumping at me when I got home , Ive basically said to all my other dogs yes its ok to jump around and bark when I get home and I'll show you how OK and good it is by giving you loads of fuss and reward you by doing it .

In the past not such a problem , but with Carries Speed and her not quiet realizing her legs are as long as they are or her realizing how big she is , its something Im glad Ive got to grips with.

LOL,Their clever little monsters arn't they, perhaps Teddy helped her!!!! xx

I came home this evening and she ran into the Kitchen for her food and she has calmed alot , she still excitable but she has calmed , anyway , I went up stairs and noticed some wood pellets that I use for the fire scattered all along the stairs , a bit strange but the riddle was answered when I got into my bedroom and there was her muzzle lying on the floor , still perfectly fastened , I dont know how but she managed to get it off , Im sure it was on properly after she had eaten this morning after all its been on and off twice a day for nearly 2 weeks , so I think Ive got the hang of it by now , luckily the rooms and part of the house the dogs are in never have anything in them that could do her any damage , like electrical cables turned on or the like that she could chew through and injure herself , but any ideas on how she got this off? Could it just be that I misfitted it this morning or can greyhounds slip muzzles off , as I said it was still fastened the way I've been doing it since I've had her

jeff,it sounds like carrie has a wonderful home with u & teddy.i,ve always said it takes time & lots & lots of patience.x

You'd better watch out Jeff, she'll be dialling the emergency services, then you'll be in trouble!!!

Love reading all your updates, keep them coming

Mandy, Goldie n Ruby xx

your updates are so lovely to read and i know just how you feel...when i lost my Lenny and then adopted Rossi the greyhound i always felt that part of Lenny had come back to me and that Rossi had been sent by Lenny to make Monty dog happy again as he was so sad without him.like you i love my greyhound boys with all my heart ( got three now) and i cannot imagine my life without their grace and love and tenderness. so pleased for you all and hope that i shall meet you all one day when i happen to be at the kennels. Ina and her three boys Toby Rossi and McKenzie :-)

Kate , Thank god for that , I was worried she was trying to use the internet

Hi Jeff, so pleased they were both ok when you got home from work yesterday....Carrie had obviously got on the desk to use the phone to call you! It is lovely to hear much you love her and I too am looking forward to regular updates! xx

Really good to read all was ok today. Keep up the good work ... looking forward to your next post Jx

Its amazing and lovely to watch her sleeping at the moment ,(its making me cry actually) shes actually on Teddy's quilt with an open sleeping bag on top of her , Ive been out of the room several times and she hasn't moved an inch , it almost seems like the longer separation today has done us both good , I was getting pretty stressed at work today just thinking about what might be going on at home , but I think she picked up on my relief when I got home and everything was pretty much as I had hoped , even the poo was pretty much what I had expected and she should now know , I aint going to leave her for nothing

I so want to unmuzzle her ( dont worry not going to) , but im actually going to keep her muzzled until my next week off , which is in 15 weeks time in July so being very cautious although I am going to do the odd and more frequent days in-between , when Im on day off and relaxed and attentive , but she has shown no interest in nipping Teddy and she still plays with toys with the muzzle on .

Don't think Ive actually said this before , as it takes time to build but,

I really and truly love her !

I took her to the Petrol Station just up the road from me yesterday to meet a lady who works there and who has had Greyhounds and she was so calm with all the customers who came including a little girl who just sat on the floor stroking her whilst her mum paid for the petrol and whilst chatting to her mum guess what , they had not long lost their greyhound

I dont think I could ever consider another breed of dog now , Greyhounds are perfect for me

Oh and.... she is so amazing on the lead that when she sees people now , she just holds her face right on my legs until we have walked past them...

the last week has been hard work and intense, trying to stop bad behavior before it happens but the rewards are just sprouting on what is going to be a Normal day for all 3 of us

Ok so I lied about not still giving regular updates

Jeff

Well , first day back at work, but managed to control the excitement when I got home , it seems my little routine worked throughout the week so coming home tonight was like coming in at any other time , I did have some mess to clear up , but luckily she does that downstairs so its easy to clean up , Im sure that will improve given time , but I think that just means giving a bit less food in the mornings

oh and there was clear evidence she had been on my desk ( namely the fact the phone was knocked off the hook and the alarm clock was on the floor) just call me sherlock holmes for working that one out !!
but nothing amazingly untoward and she was fine when my nieghbour let her out . She settled amazingly quickly after I came home and thats the main thing , I've been used to poo and wee given recent months with Eve and at least I know that will get better and should stop altogether soon enough

Hi Jeff, hope all has been ok today. Jx

Hi Jeff, I hope all goes well now you are back at work. I work full time too and I know how hard it is to have to leave them. x

Hi Jeff So glad to hear that Carrie is settling down with you,don't worry about asking lots of questions- greyhounds are very different from 'real dogs' LOL and we're happy to help you and Carrie :) .. Best wishes Julie

Hi Jeff
Lovely latest post. Love to you both .
The New Icemaid Clan x

Amazing how exactly one week ago she was up on the kitchen units and now she is just wandering around with the kitchen door wide open although its best kept closed when shes unattended , We just had a little muzzle off playing with a few tennis balls session ( without Teddy) in the garden , she is so gentle and special ... back to work tomorrow so the longest time shes been without me and me without her.... I know there are some great people out there some with more dog fitting lifestyles and work patterns than mine ,but I just wouldn't want her to have been with anyone else but me now , even though I know without all of your advice I could have run into big problems... thanks everyone whos given me advice .
I realize Ive been a bit ( a lot) more vocal than most people homing a dog , but I like to get things right and listen to what people have to say ..

all I really wanted was a new special little girl and I've got one and her name is Carrie Eden...

Jeff

Good to read you and whoofs have had a good day .. wishing you all, all the best for the future Jx

Great news Jeff keep up the great work.
Regards the New Icemaid Clan.

One of the last daily updates , had a nice calm day , the new fences are nearly in place so my garden is Nearly Greyhound friendly , it will be finished tomorrow , did a proper mock going to work test today with my neighbor coming in and all was fine....

I have to admit I am so happy to see Twiggy when I get home from work that sometimes it is probably she who should be turning her back, folding her paws and ignoring me until I settle down! x

Well , Ive had seemingly some success , I went out for the longest time away from her today and although she got excited when I came back she didn't jump at all or even get "leggy" with me , I held her collar and she calmed literally in a second then remained calm. I know any attention when they are doing something you don't want is not right but to completely ignore her would have been impractical for the past few days as she was so excitable , so holding her collar and saying nothing seems to have done the trick, Im also not showing any attention to her when I have even the smallest period of absence , like just going to the bathroom and coming back into the room where she is .

Had a bit of a devil and deep blue sea situation whilst walking her , she spotted some funny looking birds ( havent got a clue what they were they looked like grey Dodos , maybe the dodo still lives in Bromyard!!) up the lane , so I turned to walk back down the lane and some people were walking their dog , I chose the dog route and she was , just calm , no fuss whatsoever, whilst I was stood talking to them , she actually moved herself closer to me if anything.

The thing is that any attention is seen as a reward so looking, holding, anything .. so quite right not to speak to them while they are doing something you don't want but better to turn your back, fold your arms and wait till they settle down then you can quietly praise them. Much nicer to tell/show them what you want rather than punish them. J x

Hi Jeff, rather than shutting the kitchen door, why dont you try using a stair gate. I am also going to send you a DVD in the post on loan to watch..... this will help you lots and lots of things..... watch for the postman! x

Well done to you All and thanks Jeff for the terrier trick ... when I get home ... well I'm working on it and we are improving .... Jessie initally gave me some beautifully patterned bruises down my legs from jumping .. but like you I give no verbal .. the JR goes straight outside on her own .. and I stand still with the mop stale angled across of me and today is the first day Jessie hasnt attempted to jump!! bet that isnt in any training book!! So like you we are learning together ... happy days Jx

Hi Jeff, I am sure you will succeed, I will look forward to seeing a picture of them lying together by the woodburner. x

Hi Jeff, glad to hear things are coing along nicely. Just to let you know we've lived in our house for18yrs and NEVER shut pur kitchen door, not when we had our 1st son nor number 2, not even when I started childminding and there were plenty of little fingers around then..............well, Gold came to live in our house in Sept '11, and the cry was "SHUT THAT DOOR!!!!" Then just to add to the fun we added Ruby(Joan) to the family and a new cry "IS THAT KITCHEN DOOR SHUT???" Thankfully most of the time is shut with the girls on the outside. Have fun with Teddy and Carrie xx

Kate ,I'm having to be quiet careful with him and her long legs and excitement ,which is why Im not encouraging her getting excited he tried to have another go on tuesday when she was getting excited but this time unlike sundays little grumble he got his proper correction technique , Cold water in his face and NO and ignored for 24 hours , completely ignored and just pushed away whenever he came near me with No verbal communication at all ( seems to work very well with Terriers) I knew he would try it on at one point , so better to get it out of the way sooner and make him fully aware that thats NOT going to be tolerated in a way that I know he fully understands.... apart from that little moment , they've been sleeping side by side , Him on his bed and Carrie on hers.

Its a big change for all of us ,Even my house feels different as Im having to shut the kitchen door at the moment , just in case she tries to get on the worktops which in 14 years I've never closed the kitchen door and it seems to make the whole house feel different...

But , touch wood , nothing I can't handle ( and Im not going to add the word "yet" to that comment) , I had such a hard time with Teddy in the beginning and am so glad I didn't give him back and I persevered even though I was , at one point with him seconds away from doing so ..

This is a bit different , but easy by comparison and thats going to be the best bit , when in the winter, after a walk in the snow, she lying , unmuzzled ,with Teddy , by the woodburner and I just know thats going to happen !!

Hi Jeff, I had to smile at the thought of Carrie's muzzle covered in dough! I hope Teddy is coping with having a mad Greyhound as a housemate! Kate x

Well , everything is Calm at the moment , had 2 poo and wee free nights in the house and she is getting the idea of making a fuss ( the very gentle little woof that she has) to go out even if that is at 3am , I dont really mind , I would rather she get the idea that if she wants to go out she can make a fuss , most of the time she just spends sleeping although she does follow me around everywhere.

Shes getting better at being fed as well , firstly she was manic , but shes calming down a bit now , I know Im overfeeding her at the moment but again Im not too worried about that ,as for me , thats an easy thing sorted out in the coming weeks

The Muzzle , though , has proved a godsend , I was making some bread earlier and turned my back for one second and ended up with a muzzle covered in dough , but there was plenty left for me but she is keeping her paws off the Kitchen units quiet well now when Im preparing food for myself.

She is really an excitable little girl though , and when I come back from being out , she gos stupid , so all Im doing at the moment is not talking to her apart from holding her collar to stop her from jumping and when shes calm then making a fuss of her, this is the point where Im at most risk of Teddy having a go at her because she dosent care what she treads on with her long legs in her excitement so Im keen to get her to understand that even though she may be excited to see me ,she needs to calm down before I show any real attention.

But she seems to be learning a few basics of dog etiquette , Saturday and sunday are going to be the Mock ups of me going to work , with my neighbor coming in halfway through the period Im out even though Im not working

and she is managing the stairs alot better , first she just lept from the bottom to the top but now she sortof walks and touches most of the stairs...

anyway thats enough for now...

Thats a relief I think a few hearts missed a beat yesterday as everyone really wants a safe and happy time for you all.

We went on the first walk today , I did cut it a bit short as she spotted some Golden retrievers up the lane and I thought it best in the early days not to go too close But she is much better on the lead than I expected when she saw them , she was interested but we just turned around and came back home

I understand what you say about Muzzling and trust me , I wont be taking any risks , she is only at the moment going to be unmuzzled when she is supervised and I can give 100% attention as I was yesterday ,following what you said , she is muzzled again at the moment,as Im otherwise distracted and not giving 100% attention and she will definitely be muzzled when Im out .

I agree too although they may become best of friends it really is best to keep the newbie muzzled. When we got our 2nd we kept both ours muzzled for at least 2 weeks then started to introduce them on walks unmuzzled and then gradually built up to evenings whilst we were home and then made the brave decision after about 3-4 weeks to leave them unmuzzled whilst we were at work. Lots of people kept saying we were being a bit over protective but they now both get on fine and have never had a cross word between them so glad we took it nice and slow. I would really recommend the classes too as you can learn so much not only about your own dog but about the signals other dogs may be demonstrating for you to read how they are going to be with your dog. Good luck and remember to take tiny paw steps to make it work.

Hi Jeff How lovely to hear how you and Carrie have found each other and altho she'll never replace Eve she can hopefully fill some of the huge gap Eve left :( . I'd agree with Sarah about keeping the muzzle on - greys are used to wearing them and it's better to be safe than her take a nip at Teddy in her excitement and you have a problem to deal with. We offer free training classes for all our new owners (and you can keep coming once the four free sessions are up), if you've not had a hound before they are very useful to show you how different hounds are and you meet lots of greyt owners too :) Best wishes Julie

Hi Jeff. So pleased u now hav Carrie home n I can tell how much u luv her already. Can I just make a suggestion that u don't become complacent n remove carries muzzle too soon. If she is snarling at teddy on occasions u really hav too b very careful. Most new dogs living together will hav an occasional grumble, mine certainly did n that was 3 weeks after I took my second on. Luckily it was mostly noise n I was the only one who got bitten but my two r very close in size. I kno teddys alot smaller than Carrie n I'd just be very careful as any disagreement between the two could end up with disastrous consequences. I really wish u, Carrie n teddy all the best for the future, I can tell how much they both mean to u. X

Hope you have had a good day and all is quiet .... I cant wait for the daily updates either!!! Carrie will soon learn with your and Teddy's help Jx

Ruth , Ive just emailed a couple of Pics , Hope you can put them on the website.

Ive actually been a bit emotional about how she seems to have made herself at home so quickly , shes a beautiful little dot and her coat and condition has greatly improved over the few weeks since I first met her and that she has been In Daybreaks

Yesterday she was jumping on the kitchen worktop and snarling through her muzzle at Teddy and today , its like shes been here forever , Teddy is just wandering around and barking at the traffic as normal , Still , The words of you all ring in my head and she might be great in the house and garden , but Im not going to say Im not taking risks when I take her out for the first time tomorrow , more that , Im going to be a responsible dog owner and Muzzle her and be very cautious

I've had a massive cry today , probably a combination of losing one dog and seeing another seemingly so happy and settled in less than one day , Still Im sure she will bring on a few surprises so I cant get too complacent just yet !

i cant wait to the daily posts Jeff! be a good girly carrie! love you xx

We had a reasonably settled first night , and Im sure she will soon understand that me getting up in the middle of the night doesn't mean she has to , she did have a couple of accidents overnight , one was the unmistakable sound of a wee when I was in bed , but she was very quick to run to the backdoor when I jumped out of bed and said NO.
Teddy seems to be showing her what to do , so Im quick to respond if he barks at the backdoor downstairs and she just watches, Shes now been out of the muzzle all morning apart from when I popped out to the shop and she had a tiny little very ladylike bark last night

Hi Jeff, it was lovely to meet you yesterday. Carrie is a very lucky girl to have found a home with you and Teddy. I hope the next few days go well as you all get to know each other. I am sure you are right when you say Eve has chosen Carrie for you, and I loved your reasons for calling her Carrie Eden. Looking forward to hearing all the news! Kind regards, Kate xx

Shes been showing an interest in the outbuilding where I keep Coal and Wood and I haven't been able to work out why , until I took her Muzzle off for breakfast , she just ran into the outbuilding launched about 6 foot into the air and grabbed the beef bones that Eve and Teddy had finished with one day

Oh Jeff, just logged on after a very busy day n first thing n I did was look for Carrie's re-homing pic n there it was, a delight. Have loved reading all your posts today n lookin forward to your week off work n regular updates! Hope 1st night goes well xxx

God I spelt her name wrong in the first post I wrote Cari , not Carrie

Already every time I move , she just gets up and starts wagging her tail , shes just done a big wee wee outside and received almost a fanfare , Its great to see her snuggling her face into her bed , this time tommorrow , she should be able to do it without a muzzle , I think I could take it off now , but not taking chances for her first night , told you I would keep you updated and I think when she wees , is pushing the updates too much , but when shes settled , I just let her be . She is a fidget in her bed though she just keeps nuzzling into it and rolling over... Im absolutely Knackered , but well worth it

Ha Ha Jeff welcome to the world of hounds.Sounds like you have a very clever girl some greys never get the hang of stairs.Being food orientated she will probably be great to train but I reckon you have yourself a real character so you better show her who is boss.Best wishes and good luck.

I'm not going to get up from the chair at the moment to get the camera ,as I know she will get up too , but she has her head buried in her bed and is fast alseep even though Teddy is barking at anything thats moving past the house and I live on a main road...

.I was warned about loads of things , Cats , Off lead , but never about crying when I saw her again or the sudden jump on the kitchen worktop ,I still can't get my head round just how quickly she did that and still can't believe she did , but then those are the moments that are irreplaceable and just exactly why I got another dog

All will settle once everyone gets to know each other and the house rules understood!! Enjoy and hope your head clears Jx

This is a shortened ( yes I did say shortened) version of why Im giving Carrie an addition to her name ...

The day Eve died after I came home and had an hour or so with Teddy I went into work , as soon as I got into work , ( work was the best thing to distract myself) a song was on the tannoy, I had heard it before and didnt know who it was , a week later I found out it was coldplay Paradise , this inspired a name for a new dog , I would call her EDEN , Im sure you will get the connection Eve , Eden and Paradise

Inbetween I had met Sue from Jordan Bear charity and got the idea of getting a retired Greyhound , I could never justify just going out and buying a puppy

then a few weeks later, I went off the idea of having a new dog I was still upset about Eve , as I still get moments even today and probably will for years to come.

Then another couple of weeks went by and after a visit at work from Sue , I found the Daybreaks website and there was a cute Little Girl , Called Carrie ,I phoned my boss at work , who has been very supportive about Eve and was telling her and she said I should get off my bum and go and see Carrie, so I did and Teddy and I fell in love with her..

A few days after the RGT home visit I was listening to Coldplay Paradise and looking at Carries picture and something suddenly clicked , it was like a brick hitting me in the face....

My boss who may be retiring early , this year , said I would get something to keep her memory alive with me she is a Great Lady and her Name is.."Cari Eadon" , and the name I had thought of ,about a week after Eve died was Eden and here is a dog called Carrie

So Carries new Name is Carrie Eden , which means Joy in Paradise a name ,which my boss says she feels strangely honored about ...and as for me , after Eves sent me even more signs and strange co-incidences than I have written about , a Dog I feel honored that Eve has sent for me to love , nothing will ever replace Eve and Carrie has nothing to live up to since Eve was Eve and Carrie is Carrie

I truly believe that Eve has chosen Carrie for me ,Carrie, is her own unique and special Character and Im looking forward to sharing my years with Carrie Eden....

thanks Eve , for nudging me in the right direction and finding a special dog for me...

Jeffrey

Well , not without a couple of teething issues , Cari is finally home , shes had a grumble at Ted and Teds had a grumble at her , but shes found her bed on her own and found where she has water without any coaxing at all.

Shes met my nieghbour and she is currently sleeping , its now my intention to try and ignore her for a day or so , actually Ignore them both , just correct any mis behaivour and reward any good behaviour and just try and ignore the both of them for a few days and although shes jumped on my bed , My bed is now out of bounds again for both dogs when Im in it ( i have been letting Teddy sleep with me for the past few weeks)

Anyway once they were reintroduced My neighbour and I bought Teddy and Carrie into the house and straight into the garden, and after a while of being off leads ( luckily my nieghbour was still with me) Carrie without warning , spotted her food on the kitchen windowsill and in a flash she was stood all fours on top of the counter , so it made sense to separate the dogs and feed them both , which was a bit difficult becuase she was still muzzled and I had to get that off , but luckily Alison was here and lend a hand...

Although , as I write , the signs are good , about half an hour ago , I went to the kitchen for some food and she kept putting her paws on the counter and trying to get it , so several times I just pushed her away and said down , and Ive just been back down for some more and not once did she make any attempt to put her feet on the counter....

It is a bit scarey though just how fast she is , she was on the counter without warning in a heartbeat ( which luckily for me I was next to a power socket to jumpstart my Heart)
and gets from the bottom of the stairs to the top in about 2 steps...

Thanks Ruth and everyone at Daybreaks for getting me this far and lovely to meet you "LadyVictoria" today...

I have a stonking sinus headache now

Next up , why Carrie is getting a new addition to her name

Wishing you, Teddy and Carrie much happiness together xxxx

Enjoy this long awaited day .... can't wait to see picis ... enjoy every minute Jx

I should be there around 11.30 -12 as Sue is lending me a dog cage for the car and Im picking up someone who was with sue the other day , when she came in to work to see me as he has never been to the daybreaks before then when I get home , my neighbours are going to hold her on the lead ( this is my neighbour who lets the dogs out when Im at work so they need to meet pretty soon) so I can go inside to get Teddy to get them to meet again outside and go for a quick walk up the lane before she finally gets to see her new home , new little miss sunshine bed and the new toys which I bought for her and Teddy today ( but she wont get those until shes had a good look around)
Then .... thats when I'll REALLY start posting messages on here !!!!

OOOOOh Jeff how's the excitement in your house, only 1sleep left!! Good luck for tomorrow, lookin forward to the rehoming picture n all you're updates xxx

Hi Jeff, hope all goes well at the weekend when you and Teddy finally get to take Carrie home! xx

Not long to go now!!! Just watched your youtube video ... what a lovely home Carrie is going to ... lots of fun and treats Jx

Oh it's now so close Jeff, really looking forward to the photo's of Carrie and Teddy xx

Yeah Teddy is a Skye Terrier big dog on little legs soon to be joined by a big dog on big legs...

Hi jeff ive just watched your video on utube is teddy a Skye terrier by any chance?

yes I can see from the video on YOUTUBE that Carrie can expect rather a nice birthday cake and if she is lucky perhaps one on her gotcha day.
I was also impressed with Eves food refusal skills you obviously loved and trained her well.

Have watched the video Jeff....two very happy dogs! What a nice way to remember your lovely Eve. xx

Its what drew me to her in the first place , because she has a mad face and looks like my kinda dog , Imagine the dog food cake Im going to make for her on her first birthday with me , her 4th on 1st January 2013 funnily enough she was born on the first day of january and I was born on the last day of january so we share our birthdays in the same month

That'll be a mad house then Jeff!! Just what is ordered for Carrie, only 4more sleeps!!! xx

I have a lot to live up to after this thread which I first posted to on 25th february , if you still wonder what kind of home Carrie is going to then youtube "Eves 11th" , and look for my video of eves 11th birthday by bridge26

Argggh Carrie's so sweet!! Going to miss her so much when she leaves!! She's had he teeth cleaned my me and Danni today all ready for her new home aha she was golden!! :') xxxx

Jeff and Teddy, just a few more days to wait for Carrie.....x

Oh Jeff I'm so excited only 5sleeps to go! xxx

Well , it must be fate that I found Carrie and when I tell the story after I get her on sunday of how she came to be , you will be in no doubt it must be fate because 2 skye terrier females have just come into rescue and had I had not found Carrie , I would have been up for one of them .... I truly believe that Eve chose Carrie for me and kept nudging me in the right direction and you will too when you hear the story... 5 days to go and I can't wait for those days can't go quick enough !

Our my goodness Jeff just can't believe it's only a week till the most spoilt grey ever arrives home. Teddy the lucky boy gets a new duvet cover too!! don't want any jealousy you too!! x

1 week to go Carrie , Teddy says he can't wait to show you his new Sponge bob square pants quilt cover....

I popped into the kennels today and met this beautiful girl so glad she has such a loving home waiting for her,I can imagine how bad the wait feels,I found 3 days hard,wishing u all the best x

Hi Jeff, I hope the rest of your wait goes quickly. I know how it feels, I had to wait 42 days from knowing I could have a greyhound until I finally got my lovely girl. I had a calendar and crossed each day off! x

Lets hope it's 10 days left! Can't wait for the homing pic xx

hopefully just 10 more days left and at worst 11 still far to long to wait...

OOOOOh Carrie "a little Miss Sunshine" cover you are one lucky little girl. Not long now Jeff, so looking forward to Carrie going home with you n all the updates. Take care oh n how many sleeps have you got left? x

Cant wait to see the picis Jx

Thats Carries new bed sorted then , I just found a "Little Miss Sunshine" quilt cover on ebay...hope she likes it

Hope you have a rehoming pici taken with Teddy and Carrie ... not long to wait Jx

2 weeks to go, it seems like years since Teddy and I first met her and its only been 12 days ago that I did , you shouldn't wish your life away but heres hoping the next 2 weeks go really quickly

Hi Jeff, hopefully not long now until you get Carrie. We had Faith (now Lucy) last Saturday and we are so glad we did. She is fab and has been so good. She looks a bit like Carrie, I have posted some more pictures of Lucy on the Perry Barr Facebook page. http://www.facebook.com/groups/15539565263/10150593831365264/?notif_t=like

Good luck and hope it all goes smoothly, she sounds lucky to have such a lovely Dad waiting for her. :-) xxx Jo

Good to read you're getting everything ready for the arrival of Carrie ... not long before she comes to her forever home Jx

Had Carries name tag delivered today , Im Keeping her name , with a slight addition , shes having a double barrel name , How posh !!! I will share it when I have her here , its a long story, but for me ,very poignant and is all about Carrie and how chance got me to meet her..., I have her bowl for "Yum Yums" ( thats Dinner to normal people ) Now just bedding and new fences to sort out oh and a coat and a rug for the bottom of the stairs to stop her skidding on the floor , oh and toys , Oh well , at least its a start !!

I do hope her room mate Stevie gets a home soon and Im going to follow his progress too , Like I said on his page , if I could take him , I would , but I think Teddy wouldn't know what had hit him with 2 giants suddenly turning up here.... hopefully 2 weeks 4 days will bring a home for Stevie too ...

Hi Jeff, it's so nice to share your excitement....I am counting the days down for you too!! x

We love the updates... just make sure you keep us posted once you get your little lady home! xxx

she is lovely, her and stevie are amazing! i went and saw her on sunday then i changed her and stevie into there new bedroom/kennel xx

Not boring at all Jeff, It's easy to become obsessed with this discussion page--I look at it every time I sit down--but what a good thing to get obsessed about! Hopefully it will encourage those who are thinking about homing a grey to take that step. It's also very useful to discuss any little problems and hear others' experiences of dealing with them. Keep writing, especially when you finally get Carrie, not long now.

Have no fear Jeff you are not boring just letting us all know how excited you are to re-homing Carrie. I can understand as I now have to beautiful greys, I had to wait a week to bring Gold home, I ended up going to walk her n would have gone more if itwasn't for pesky work! Luckily we were able to bring Ruby home for a trial period n well............yep she never went back! So keep on posting n can't wait till she goes to her new with you!! x

I was trying not to post any messages today , but as ever I have become obsessed , I hope im not boring anyone...

I feel so lucky to have found her , all the other greyhounds are beautiful , but theres just something about Carrie that says She is meant for me , I just keep looking at her picture and her face just tells me she is my dog , I would love to have her now , but that would be a bit stupid , just waiting for my week off , 2 weeks 6 days !

So pleased to hear the home visit went well. I had the pleasure of meeting your little Carrie at the kennels on Sunday, she is beutiful. I hope the next three weeks go quickly for you and Teddy. x

Hopefully Connie is having a fun time with Eve in the meadows until we get there to take them over rainbow bridge , I now have suddenly realized like a brick to my face just how many co incidences have occurred to get me to meet Carrie , its a long story but one Im happy to share and I havent even got her yet , but even if shes difficult to start , She will have my commitment whatever happens , my dogs are, and have always been number 1 priority in my little life in my adult years because I have been so rewarded with so much love and one day finally watching the 2 rescues I have had and suddenly one snowy morning with the dogs head on the radiator , lying on his back and me thinking, you are settled now in their short little lives , I still miss Eve so much , but Im not looking to replace her , I never could ,Eve was Eve and our relationship was so special Im looking forwards to another complete Character , warts and all !

I can identify with your post ..... I signed the adoption papers yesterday for Jessie after having her on trial for 2 weeks. It was only a fortnight after my grey Connie went to rainbow bridge, she will always be with me, that I had a 'chance chat' with Kerry at Daybreaks and was introduced to Jessie. After our early morning walk and breakfast she is now snoozing in her new forever home! Wishing you all the best and keep us posted Jx

I can't also forget , that I've got this far in memory of Eve , my German Shep ,who died 5 weeks ago , to find Carrie after a chance meeting with Sue from the Jordan Bear Charity , who Id never met before, 3 days after Eve died ,its fate and Eves way of saying thanks for the life I had , Im sending you someone else to love , One of the last things I said to Eve was Thank you for being with me , I think shes proud of me and waiting for me in the meadows near to Rainbow Bridge....

No dog could be more difficult to re-home than the one I have at the moment , Teddy was an unbelievable nightmare when I had him , but he is now a great little boy...

I so wish my week off was nearer than 3 weeks

Lovely to read your positive comments Jeff ... wishing you, Teddy and Carrie all the bestist when Carrie comes to live with you. Enjoy .. it's amazing how life changes for the better with a grey in the household!!! Enjoy Jx

Im just amazed at the responsible friendly community and the support available , I still have another 3 weeks until Carrie comes to her new home and Teddy has another 3 weeks of being single, Oh well absence makes the heart grow fonder for both of us

So nice to read such positive comments xxxx Enjoy Carrie, it sounds like she is going to enjoy living with you and Teddy xxxx

What a lovely thread. :-) Good luck Jeff! Having a grey is a wonderful experience. Carrie looks gorgeous, hope you are all very happy. xxx

What wonderful comments, its lovely to hear you gained so much from your home visit, and that u aretaking your responsibility seriously. . you will find the rewards from carrie in love and loyalty are endless! Time and patience can resolve most issues and you have a huge network of support available to you! Sounds like you have landed on you feet little girl wel done xxx

I am so very pleased that you found your home visit so useful. We are proud at Perry Barr Trust to be able to offer support throughout the whole process of visiting, choosing, homing and the aftercare of your greyhound as every step is equally important. I look forward to seeing you soon. Ruth

Now I have got my head around it , the home visit was amazing , Such a responsible , professional approach ,Both Jill and Paul even turned up in RGT uniform a load of information and has reminded me that I am taking on the unknown , not to trust to early and NOT to become complacent . I honestly thought I would gain nothing from it beforehand ,but it was invaluable , professional and personal . Im now actually going to be proud of walking Carrie up the lane with a muzzle making the statement , that I am a responsible dog owner and not a weak one who has to muzzle his dog because he cant control her...
I also thought ,being honest and I hope I offend no one , that it would be easy to rehome a retired racer , but the experience has far reached my expectations and I know Im going to become an even more responsible dog owner from it..
Thanks for the support so far , Jill asked that I keep in touch , Trust me , you will all be asking me to stop keeping in touch..

Jeff

I'm sure Carrie will appreciate the gardening done in her honour, have fun xxx

Hope the home check has gone ok and Carrie will soon be with you Jx

Some Garden Tidying for me then after my home visit, its about time I got off my bum and sorted it out anyway , but other than that OK , Im now really looking forward to getting her...

I hope the home check goes well tonight and Carrie will soon be on her way to live with you and Teddy. I think the chocolate biscuits are a good move! x

Home visit friday at 6.30pm , I hope Im suitable and Jill approves of my chocolate biscuits

Dont worry , there will be loads of updates on her progress , I just can't wait to start , my dogs are my life and making them happy makes me happy , I'm just happy that I have the opportunity to do it again for another , one thing that one of the girls at the kennels said was the reason that dogs lives are so short is so we can love so many of them in our lifetime ...

Hi Jeffhr7, sorry to hear Teddy has been sick, I hope he is feeling better now. I am sure he is getting lots of TLC from you. Hope everything goes well when Carrie comes to live with you. It would be great to hear how she is getting on. Kind regards Kate xx

LadyVictoria , I've been thinking about her all day , I can't wait to get her and great support from the Jordan Bear Charity , Sue is going to help me bring Carrie to her new home , Teddy has been sick today , but then he did have a long drive yesterday and a very different day out , but now so close to losing a dog Im worried about him , but im sure he will be fine and looking forward to his new girlfriend , I think hes just got the lovebug...

Hi Jeffhr7, great to hear Teddy has met Carrie and they like each other! You are right Daybreaks is a brilliant place! x

Very sorry to hear of your loss; I do hope your meeting with Carrie goes well for you both. Kind reagards xxx

Just been over to see Carrie today and she and my Dog Teddy seemed to like each other , what a nice compact, clean, well run rescue center Daybreaks is and the ladies are brilliant ,but I still cant wait to get Carrie to her new home , she is a tiny dot compared to all the others....

Well done Carrie xxxx

She looks mad !! and I've just registered an interest in her , since I lost my German shep of 14 1/2 years a few weeks ago , Im hopefully going to see her next week , so Carrie , if you are right for me then wait up , you will have a great home with Me and teddy

This little girl is tiny and really mad. I love her xx

What a lovely face. Glad to hear she is feeling better today. xxx

Carrie has had a very settled and quiet night. She is a happy little girl and wagging her tail lots x so very affectionate x

This gorgeous little girl is at our house following her spey today.... She really is so beautiful. I took her bandage off earlier as she had a 'belly band' as she had bled earlier and she was so much happier without it. She is enjoying sampling home life and has been so settled and good here. xxxx

She looks beautiful xxxx